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)ok is DUE on the la?^ -^-^^ ' " ^mped Deiow
T HE
O R K S
OF THE
ENGLISH P O E T So
WITH
BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL^
By SAMUEL JOHNSON.
^VOLUME THE FIFTY-SEVENTH.
LONDON:
PR INTED BY A. HAMILTON;
rCR J. BUCKLAND, J. RIVIXGTON AND SONS, T. PAYNE AKD
SON, L. DAVIS, B. WHITE AND SON, T. LONGMAN, B. LAW;
J. DODS LEY, H.BALDWIN, J. ROB SON, CD ILLY, T.CADELL
J. NICHOLS, J. JOHNSON, O. G. J. AND J. ROBINSON
R. BALDWIN, H. L. GARDNER, P. ELMSLY, T. EVANS
C. NTCOL, LEIGH AND SOTHEBY, J. BEW, N. CONANT
J. MURRAY, J. SE WELL, W. GOLDSMITH, V/. RICHARDSON
T. VERNOK, W. LOWNDES, W. BENT, W. OT RIDGE, T. AND
J. EGERTON, S. HAYES, R. F AULD E R, J. EDWARDS, C. AND
T. WILKIE, W.NICOLI. jOGILVY AND SPEARF, S CATCHER©
AND WaiTASER, W.FOX,C.STAI.Ii£B;E,NEWSERY. I79O,
In I
SjT L i
H E
FIFTY-SEVENTH VOLUME
OF THE
ENGLISH POETS;
CONTAINING
AMBROSE PHILIPS
AND
WEST.
Vn. . LVir,
PASTORALS,
EPISTLES, ODES,
AND OTHER
ORIGINAL POEMS,
WITH TRANSLATIONS FROM
PINDAR, ANACREON, AND SAPPHO.
BY AMBROSE PHILIPS, ESQJJIRE.
" hie caeilus artemque repono." V"i rg.
Vol. LVIL
[ 3 ]
TO HIS GRACE
THOMAS^ DUKE OF NEWCASTLE.
MY LORD,
'"pHE honours of your ancient and illuflrious fa-
^ mily, which that noble writer, Algernon Sidney,
places among the firll in thefe kingdoms for preroga-
tive of birth, the titles which you have long worn with
dillinguilhed luftre, and the high ftation which you
have many years filled, and now fill, in the government,
give your Grace a juft preheminence in the commu-
nity ; but they are excellencies of a more exalted kind
to which this tribute of my refpe<n: is paid. Your early
zeal in the caufe of liberty, which manifefted itfelf
at the clofe of a late reign, when the worft of fchemes
v.-ere promoted againfl this nation by the worft of men,
the affociation (of which I had the honour to be an
humble member) into which you then entered, with
fome others, eminent for their birth, fortune, and
knowledge, for fecuring the fucceflion of the houfe of
Hanover to the throne of thefe kingdoms, your tafte
of ufeful and polite literature, and the encouragement
which you have been always ready to give to it, your
friendly regard to, and connexion with, that uni-
verfity which has been the nurfe of the greateft ftatef-
men, heroes, philofophers, and poets, of Englifh
growth, and the open liberality of your heart on all
B z laudable
4 DEDICATION.
laudable occafions, muil: give you a place in the affec-
tions of all Engliihmen who know the intereil of their
native country : and to thofe virtues, more than to the
private friendfliip with which your Grace has long
honoured me, I make this offering of the few poetical
Pieces, which were the produce of my leifure, but fome
of my mofl: pleafant, hours : your Grace will be able
to diflinguifh thofe which have been printed before,
from thofe which now make their firft appearance : and
I number among the felicities of my days this oppor-
tunity of approaching you with fomething perhaps not
unworthy your acceptance ; and I have the honour to
be.
My Lord,
Your Grace's
moft devoted, obliged,
and molt humble fervant,
April, 1748.
AMBROSE PHILIPS.
PAS TO-
[ 5 ]
PASTORAL POEMS.
<* Noftra, nee erubult fylvas habltarc, Thalia.'*
ViRG. Eel. vi. 2,
PREFACE.
T T is fomevvhat ftrange to eonceive, in an age fo ad-
•*' dided to the Mufes, how Paftoral Poetry comes to
be never fo much as thought upon ; confidering efpe-
cially, that it is of the greateil antiquity, and hath ever
been accounted the foremoft, among the fmaller poems,
in dignity. Virgil and Spenfer made ufe of it as %
prelude to Epic Poetry : but, I fear, the innoeency of
the fubjedl makes it fo little inviting.
There is no kind of Poem, if happily executed, but
gives delight ; and herein may the Paftoral boaft after
a peculiar manner : for, as in Painting, fo in Poetry,
the country affords not only the moft delightful fcenes
and profpeds, but likewife the moft pleafmg images
of life.
Gaffendus (I remember) obferves, that Peirefkius
was a great lover of mufic, efpecially the melody of
birds : becaufe their fimple ftrains have lefs of palTion
B 3 and
6 PREFACE.
and violence, but more of a fedate and quiet harmony ;
and, therefore, do they rather befriend contemplation.
In like manner, the Paftoral Song gives a fvveet and
gentle compofure to the mind ; whereas the Epic and
Tragic Poems, by the vehemency of their emotions,
raife the fpirits into a ferment.
To view a fair ftately palace, ftrikes us indeed with
admiration, and fwells the foul with notions of gran-
deur : but when I fee a little country-dwelling, advan-
tageoufly fituated amidil a beautiful variety of hills,
meadows, fields, woods, and rivulets, I feel an un-
fpeakable fort of fatisfaclion, and cannot forbear wifhing
my kinder fortune would place me in fuch a fvveet re-
tirement.
Theocritus, Virgil, and Spenfer, are the only Poets
who feem to have hit upon the true nature of Pafto-
ral Compofitions : fo that it will be fufficient praife
for me, if I have not altogether failed in my attempt.
THE
[ 7 ]
THE FIRST PASTORAL.
L O B B I N.
TF we, O Dorfet, quit the city-throng,
-*■ To meditate in fhades the rural fong,
By your command, be prefent : and, O bring
The Mufe along ! The Mufe to you fhall fmg : 4
Her influence, Buckhuril, let me there obtain.
And I forgive the fam'd Sicilian Swain.
Begin. — In unluxurious times of yore.
When flocks and herds were no inglorious flore, 8
Lobbin, a fliepherd-boy, one evening fair.
As weftern winds had cool'd the fultry air.
His number'd flieep within the fold now pent.
Thus plain'd him of his dreary difcontent; 12
Beneath a hoary poplar's whifpering boughs.
He, folitary, fat to breathe his vows.
Venting the tender anguilh of his heart.
As paffion taught, in accents free of art : 16
And little did he hope, while, night by night.
His fighs were lavifli'd thus on Lucy bright.
" All, well-a-day ! how long mult I endure
'* This pining pain ? Or who iTiall fpeed my cure ? 20
" Fond love no cure will have, feek no repofe,
'' Delights in grief, nor any meafure knows :
^' And now the moon begins in clouds to rife ;
*' The brightening ftars increafe within the fkies ; 24
B 4 <^ The
8 A. PHILIPS'S POEMS.
" The winds are hufh ; the dews diftil ; and fleep
*' Hath clos'd the eyelids of my weary fheep :
*' I only, with the prowling wolf, conftrain'd
" All night to wake : with hunger he is pain'd, 28
" And 1, with love. His hunger he may tame ;
" But who can quench, O cruel L.ovc, thy flame ?
« Whilom did I, all as this poplar fair,
" Up-raife my heedlefs head, then void of care, 32
" 'Mong ruftic routs the chief for wanton game ;
« Nor could they merry make, till Lobbin came.
" Who better feen than I in ihepherds' arts,
" To pleafe the lads, and win the lafles' hearts ! 36
" How deftly, to mine oaten-reed fo fweet,
" Wont they, upon the green to fnift their feet ?
" And, v/eary'd in the dance, how would they yearn
" Some well-devifed tale from me to learn ? 40
" For many fongs and tales of mirth had I,
" To chace the loitering fun adown the fey :
" But, ah ! fmce Lucy coy, deep -wrought her fpight
" Within my heart, unmindful of delight 44
" The jolly grooms I fly, and, all alone,
" To rocks and woods pour forth my fruitlefs moan,
*' Oh ! quit thy wonted fcorn, rclcntlefi Fair !
*' Ere, lingering long, I perlili through defpair. 4S
" Had Rofalind been miftrefs of my mind,
'^ Though not fo fair, flie would ha\ e prov'd more kind.
«' O think, unwitting maid, while yet is time,
" How flying years impair thy youthful prime 1 52
" Thy virgin-bloom will not for ever ftay,
" And flowers, though left ungather'd, will decay :
« The
PASTORALS. 9
« The flowers, anew, returning feaibns bring !
« But beauty faded has no fecond fpring. 56
" My words are wind ! Ehe, deaf to all my cries,
** Takes pleafure in the mifchief of her eyes.
*' Like frilking heifer, laofe in flowery meads,
*' She gads where'er her roving fancy leads ; 60
" Yet ftill from me. Ah me, the tirefome chace !
*^ Shy as the fawn, flie flies my fond embrace.
" She flies, indeed, but ever leaves behind,
" Fly where ftie will, her likenefs in my mind. 64
" No cruel purpofe, in my fpeed, I bear ;
" 'Tis only love ; and love why fliould'il thou fear ?
" What idle fears a maiden-breafl alarm !
« Stay, fimple girl : a lover cannot harm. 68
" Two fportive kidlings, both fair-fleck'd, I rear ;
" Whofe fliooting horns like tender buds appear :
" A lambkin too, of fpotlefs fleece, I breed,
*' And teach the fondling from my hand to feed : 72
" Nor will I ceafe betimes to cull the fields
" Of every dewy fweet the morning yields ;
" From early fpring to autumn late fnalt thou
<* Receive gay girlonds, blooming o'er thy brow : 76
" And when, — But, why thefe unavailing pains ?
" The gifts, alike, and giver, Ihe difdains :
" And now, left heirefs of the glen, flie'll deem
** Me, landlefs lad, unv/orthy her efleem : 8o
" Yet, was ihe born, like me, of fliepherd-flre ;
'*■ And I may fields and lowing herds acquire.
'^ O ! would my gifts but win her wanton heart,
« Or could I half the warmth I feel impart, 84
" How
lo A. PHILIPS'S POEMS.
** How would I wander, every day, to find
" The choice of wildings, blufhing through the rind !
" For gloffy plumbs how lightfome climb the tree,
** How rilk the vengeance of the thrifty bee ! 88
" Or ! if thou deign to live a fhcpherdefs,
" Thou Lobbin's flock, and Lobbin, fhalt pofTefs :
" And, fair my flock, nor yet uncomely I,
*' If liquid fountains flatter not; and why 92
*' Should liquid fountains flatter us, yet fliow
" The bordering flowers lefs beauteous than they grow ?
'* O ! come, my love ; nor think th' employment mean,
" The dams to milk, and little lambkins wean, g6
*' To drive a-field, by morn, the fattening ewes,
*' Ere the warm fun drink-up the cooly dews,
" While, with my pipe, and with my voice, I chear
" Each hour, and through the day detain thine ear. 100
'f How would the crook befeem thy lily-hand !
" How would my younglings round thee gazing fland !
" Ah, v/itlefs younglings ! gaze not on her eye :
" Thence all my forrow ; thence the death I die. 104
'' O, killing beauty ! and O, fore deflre !
" Mufl then my fafFcrings, but with life, expire ?
** Though blofl'oms every year the trees adorn,
*' Spring after fpring I wither, nipt with fcorn : 108
" Nor trov/ I when this bitter blaft will end,
" Or if yon flars will e'er my vows befriend.
«' Sleep, fleep, my flock ; for happy ye may take
" Sweet nightly reft, though ftill your mafter wake." 112
Now to the waning moon, the nightingale.
In flender vvarblings, tun'd her piteous tale,
6 The
PASTORALS. m
The love-fick Shepherd, liilening, felt relief,
Pleas'd with fo fweet a partner in his grief^ il6
Till, by degrees, her notes and filent night
To {lumbers foft his heavy heart invite.
THE SECOND PASTORAL,
THE NOT, COLINET.
T H E N O T.
TS it not Colinet I lonefome fee,
-*■ Leaning with folded arms againfl the tree ?
Or is it age of late bedims my fight ?
'Tis Colinet, indeed, in woeful plight. 4
Thy cloudy look, why melting into tears,
Unfeemly, now the fky fo bright appears I
Why in this mournful manner art thou found.
Unthankful lad, when all things fmile around ? S
Or hear'ft not lark and linnet jointly fing.
Their notes blithe -warbling to falute the fpring ?
Colinet.
Though blithe their notes, not fo my wayward fate ;
Nor lark would fing, nor linnet, in my ftate. i z
Each creature, Thenot, to his tafk is born.
As they to mirth and mufic, I to mourn.
Waking, at midnight, I my woes renew.
My tears oft' mingling with the falling dew, 16
ThENOTc
12 A. PHILIPS'S POEMS.
T H E N O T.
Small caufe, I ween, has lufty youth to plain :
Or who may, then, the weight of eld fuftain.
When every flackening nerve begins to fail.
And the load prefTeth as our days prevail ? 20
Yet, though with years my body downward tend.
As trees beneath their fruit, in autumn, bend ;
Spite of my fnowy head, and icy veins.
My mind a chearful temper flill retains : 24
And why fhould man, mifliap what will, repine.
Sour every fweet, and mix with tears his wine ?
But tell me, then : it may relieve thy woe.
To let a friend thine inward ailment know. 28
C o L I N E T.
Idly 'twill walle thee, Thenot, the whole day,
Shouldll; thou give ear to all my grief can fay.
Thine ewes will wander ; and the heedlefs lambs.
In loud complaints, require their abfent dams. 32
Thenot.
See Lightfoot ; he Ihall tend them clofe : and I,
'Tween wliilcs, acrofs the plain will glance mine eye.
C O L I N E T.
Where to begin I know not, where to end.
Does there one fmiling hour my youth attend ! 36
Though few my days, as well my follies fhow.
Yet are thofe days all clouded o'er with woe :
No happy gleam of funlhinc doth appear.
My lowering fky, and wintery months, to cheer. 40
My piteous plight in yonder naked tree.
Which bears the thimder-fcar, too plain I fee :
Quite
PASTORALS. 13
Quite deftitute it Hands of fhelter kind.
The mark of ftorms, and fport of every wind : 44
The riven trunk feels not th' approach of fpring ;
Nor birds among the leaflefs branches fing :
No more, beneath thy fhade, Ihall fhepherds throng.
With jocund tale, or pipe, or pleafmg fong. 48
Ill-fated tree ! and more ill-fated I !
From thee, from me, alike the Ihepherds fly.
T K E N O T.
Sure thou in haplefs hour of time waft born.
When blighting mildews fpoil the rifing corn, 52
Or blafting winds o'er blolTom'd hedge -rows pafs.
To kill the promis'd fruits, and fcorch the grafs.
Or when the moon, by wizard charm'd, forefhovvs,
Blood-ftain'd in foul eclipfe, impending woes. 55
Untimely born, ill-luck betides thee ilill.
C O L I N E T.
And can there, Thenot, be a greater ill ?
T H E NOT.
Nor fox, nor wolf, nor rot among our ilieep,
From this good Ihepherd's care his flock may keep : 60
Againft ill-luck, alas ! all forecail fails ;
Nor toil by day, nor watch by night, avails.
C 0 L I K E T.
Ah me, the while ! ah me, the lucklefs day !
Ah, lucklefs lad ! befits me more to fav. 64
Unhappy hour ! when, frefli in youthful bud,
1 left, Sabrlna fair, thy filvery flood.
Ah, filly I ! more filly than my Iheep,
Which on thy flowery banks I v.ont to keep. 68
Sweet
r4 A. P H I L I P S '^ S F O E M S.
Sweet arc thy banks ! Oh, when fliall I, once more.
With ravifh'd eyes review thine amell'd fhore ?
When, in the cryftal of thy water, fcan
Each feature faded, and my colour wan ? 72
When Ihall I fee my hut, the fmall abode
Myfelf did raife, and cover o'er with fod ?
Small though it be, a mean and humble cell.
Yet is there room for peace and me to dwell. 76
T H E N o T.
And What enticement charm'd thee, far away
^Tom thy lov'd home, and led thy heart albay ?
C o L I N E T.
A lewd defire, llrange lads and fvvains to know :
Ah, God 1 that ever I fhould covet woe ! 80
With wandering feet unblefi, and fond of fame,
I fought I know not what befides a name.
T H £ N o T.
Or, footh to fay, didii thou not hither roam
In fearch of gains more plenty than at home ? 84.
A rolling-Hqne is, ever, bare of mofs ;
And, to their coll, green years old proverbs crofs.
C O L I N E T.
Small need there was, in random fearch of gain.
To drive my pining flock athwart the plain, 88
To diftant Cam. Fine gain at length, I trow.
To hoard, up to myfelf fuch deal of woe !
My iheep quite fpent, through travel and ill- fare.
And, like their keeper, ragged grown and bare, 92
The damp, cold greenfv/ard, for my nightly bed^
And fome flant willow's trunk to reil my head.
Hard
PASTORALS. 15
Hard is to bear of pinching cold the pain ;
And hard is want to the unpraclis'd fwain : 96
But neither want, nor pinching cold, is hard.
To blafting ftorms of calumny compar'd :
Unkind as hail it falls ; the pelting Ihower
Deilroys the tender herb, and budding flower. 100
T H E N o T,
Slander we Ihepherds count the vileft wrong :
And what wounds forer than an evil tongue ?
C O L I N E T.
Untoward lads, the wanton imps of ipite.
Make mock of all the ditties I indite. 104
In vain, O Colinet, thy pipe, fo ihrill.
Charms every vale, and gladdens every hill :
In vain thou feek'H the coverings of the grove.
In the cool fhade to fing the pains of love : 108
Sing what thou wilt, ill-nature will prevail ;
And every elf hath fkill enough to rail :
But yet, though poor and artlefs be my vein,
Menalcas feems to like my fimple ftrain : 112
And, while that he delighteth in my fong.
Which to the good Menalcas doth belong.
Nor night, nor day, fhall my rude mufic ceafe ;
I alk no more, fo 1 Menalcas pleafe. 116
T H E N 0 T.
Menalcas, lord of thefe fair fertile plains,
Preferves the flieep, and o'er the fhepherds reigns :
For him our yearly wakes, and feafts, we hold.
And choofe the fairell firlHing from the fold : 1 20
He,
i6 A. PHILIPS 'S POEMS.
He, good to all, who good deferve, fhall give
Thy flock to feed, and thee at eafe to live.
Shall curb the malice of unbridled tongues.
And bounteoufly reward thy rural fongs. 124
C O L I N E T.
Firfl:, then, fhall lightfome birds forget to fly.
The briny ocean turn to paftures dry.
And every rapid river ceafe to flow.
Ere I unmindful of Menalcas grow. 12S
T H E N O T.
This night thy care with me forget ; and fold
Thy flock with mine, to ward th' injurious cold.
New milk, and clouted cream, mild cheefe and curd.
With fome remaining fruit of lafl: year's hoard, 132
Shall be our evening fa^e, and, for the night.
Sweet herbs and mofs, which gentle fleep invite :
And now behold the fun's departing ray.
O'er yonder hill, the fign of ebbing day : 136
With fongs the jovial hinds return from plow;
And unyok'd heifers, loitering homeward, low.
THE THIRD PASTORAL.
ALBINO.
'\'^7HEN Virgil thought no fhame the Doric reed
^ ^ To tune, and flocks on Mantuan plains to feed.
With young Auguflus' name he grac'd his fong :
And Spenfer, when amid the rural throng 4
He
PASTORALS. a;
He carol'd fweet, and graz'd along the flood
Of gentle Thames, made every founding wood
With good Eliza's name to ring around ;
Eliza's name on every tree was found : 8
Since then> through Anna's cares at eafe we live.
And fee our cattle unmolefted thrive.
While from our Albion her vidorious arms
Drive waileful warfare, loud in dire alarms, 1 2
Like them will I my llender mufic raife.
And teach the vocal valleys Anna's praife.
Meantime, on oaten pipe a lowly lay>
As my kids browfe, obfcure in ihades I play : 1 6
Yet, not obfcure, while Dorfet thinks no fcorn
To vifit woods, and fwains ignobly born.
Two valley fwains, both mufical, both young.
In friendfhip mutual, and united long, 20
Retire within a moify cave, to ihun
The crowd of fhepherds, and the noon -day fun,
A gloom of fadnefs overcalb their mind :
Revolving now, the folemn day they find, 24
When young Albino died. His image dear
Bedews their cheeks with many a trickling tear :
To tears they add the tribute of their verfe ;
Thefe Angelot, thofe Palin, did rehearfe. 28
A N G E L o T.
Thus, yearly circling, by-pall times return ;
And yearly, thus. Albino's death we mourn.
Sent into life, alas ! how fhort thy Hay :
How fweet the rofe ! how fpeedy to decay ! 32
Vol. LVIL C Can
13 A. PHILIP S'S POEMS-
Can we forget, Albino dear, thy knell,
Sad-founding wide from every village bell ?
Can we forget how forely Albion moan'd.
That hills, and dales, and rocks, in echo groan'd, 36
Prefaging future woe, when, for our crimes.
We loll Albino, pledge of peaceful times.
Fair boail of this fair Ifland, darling joy
Of nobles high, and every ihepherd-boy ? 40
No joyous pipe was heard, no flocks were feen.
Nor fhcpherd found upon the graffy green,
No cattle graz'd the field, nor drank the flood,
No birds were heard to warble through the wood. 44
In yonder gloomy grove out-ftretch'd he lay
His lovely limbs upon the dampy clay ;
On his cold cheek the rofy hue decayed.
And, o'er his lips, the deadly blue difplay'd : 48
Bleating around him lie his plaintive flieep.
And mourning fliepherds come, in crowds, to weep.
Young Buckhurit comes : and, is there no redrefs ?
As if the grave regarded our diftrefs ! 5 2
The tender virgins come, to tears yet new.
And give, aloud, the lamentations due.
The pious mother comes, with grief oppreft :
Ye trees, and confcious fountains, can atteft 56
With what fad accents, and what piercing cries.
She fill'd the grove, and importuned the fkies.
And every flar upbraided with his death.
When, in her widow'd arms, devoid of breath, 60
She clafp'd her fon : nor did the Nymph, for tliis.
Place in her darling's welfare all her blifs.
Him
PASTORALS, 19
Him teaching, young, the harmlefs crook to wield.
And rule the peaceful empire of the field. 64
As milk-white fwans on ftreams of filver Ihov/,
And filvery llreams to grace the meadows flowj
As corn the vales, and trees the hills adorn.
So thou, to thine, an ornament was born. 6S
Since thou, delicious youth, didll quit the plains,
Th' ungrateful ground we till with fruidefs pains.
In labour'd furrows fow the choice of wheat.
And, over empty Iheaves, in harveft fweat, 7a
A thin increafe our fleecy cattle yield ;
And thorns, and thirties, overfpread the field.
How all our hope is fled, like morning-dew !
And fcarce did we thy dawn of manhood vievv^. 76
Who, now, fliall teach the pointed fpear to throw.
To whirl the fling, and bend the fl:ubborn bow.
To tofs the quoit with ileady aim, and fir.
With flnewy force, to pitch the mafl'y bar ? 80
Nor doil tjiou live to blefs thy mother's days.
To fhare her triumphs, and to feel her praife.
In foreign realms to purchafe early fame.
And add new glories to the Britifli name : 84
O, peaceful may thy gentle fpirit reft !
The flowe.ry turf lie light upon thy breaft ;
Nor flirieking ov/1, nor bat, thy tomb fly round.
Nor midnight goblins revel o'er the ground. 83
Pali n.
No more, miftaken Aiigelot, complain :
Albino lives ; and all our tears are vain :
C 2 Albino
^ A. P H I L I P S ^ S POEMS.
Albino lives, and will for ever live.
With myriads mixt, who never know to gncvCy gZ
Who welcome every llranger-guell:, nor fear
Ever to mourn his abfence with a tear.
Where cold, nor lieat, nor irkfome toil annoy.
Nor age, nor ficknefs, comes to damp their joy : 96
And now the royal Nymph, who bore him, deigns
The land to rule, and (hield the fimple fwains.
While, from above, propitious he looks down :
For this, the welkin does no longer frown. too
Each planet fhines, indulgent, from his fphere.
And we r^new our pailimes with tlie year.
Hills, dalesj and woods, Vv'ith fhrilling pipes refound:
The boys and virgins dance, with chaplets crown'd, 104
And hail Albino blelt : the valleys ring
Albino bleft 1 O now, if ever, bring
The laurel green, the frnelling eglantine,.
And tender branches from the mantling vine, ioil
The dewy cowllip, which in meadow grows,.
The fountain-violet, and the garden-rofc,
Marfh-lilies fweet, and tufts of daffodil,
With what ye cull from wood, or verdant hill, n .-^
Whether in open fun, or fhade, they blow.
More early fome, and fome unfolding llovv^.
Bring, in heap'd canifters^ of every kind.
As if the fummer had with fpring combin'd, 116
And Nature, forward to alTiil: your care.
Bid not profufion for Albino fpare.
Your hamlets flrevv^ and every public way ;
And confecrate to mirth Albino's day ; ifec
Myfelf
PASTORALS, 2%
Myfelf will Uvifh all my little ftore.
And deal about the goblet flowing o'er :
Old Moulin there fhall harp, young Myco fing.
And Cuddy dance the round amid the ring, 1 24
And Hobbinol his antic gambols play :
To thee thefe honours, yearly, will we pay :
Nor fail to mention thee in all our chear.
And teach our children the remembrance dear, 128
When we our Ihearing-fealt, or harveil keep.
To Ipeed the plow, and blefs our thriving Iheep.
\\'hile willow kids, and herbage lambs purfue,
W'hile bees love thyme, and locui't fip the dew, 132
While birds delight in woods their notes to ilrain.
Thy name and f\veet memorial Ihall remain.
THE FOURTH PASTORAL.
MYCO, A R G O L.
M Y c o.
'T^HI S place may feem for (hepherd's lelfure made,
"*• So clofi thefe elms inweave th^ir lofty Ihade ;
The twining woodbine, how it climbs ; to breathe
Refrefhing fweets around on all beneath ; 4
The ground with grafs of chearful green befpread.
Through which the fpringing flower up -rears the head ;
Lo, here the kingcup of a golden hue,
Medly'd with daifies white and endive blue, S
And honeyfackles of a purple die,
Confufion gay ! bright waving to the eye.
C 3 Hark,
zi A. PHILIPS'S POEMS.
Hark, how they warble in that brambly bulh.
The gaudy goldfinch, and the fpeckly thrufh, \z
The linnet green, with others fram'd for fkill.
And blackbird fluting through his yellow bill :
In fprightly concert how they all combine.
Us prompting in the various fongs to join : 1 6
Up, Argol, then, and to thy lip apply
Thy mellow pipe, or voice more founding try :
And fmce our ewes have graz'd, what harms if they
Lie round and liilen while the lambkins play ? 20
A R G 0 L.
Well, Myco, can thy dainty wit exprefs
Fair Nature's bounties in the fairefc drefs :
'Tis rapture all ! the place, tlie birds, the fky ;
And rapture works the finger's fancy high. z/^
Sweet breathe the fields, and now a gentle breeze
Moves every leaf, and trembles through the trees :
111 fuch incitements fuit my rugged lay.
Befitting more the mufic thou canll play. z%
Myco.
No fkill of mufic kon 1^ fimple fvvain.
No fine device thine ear to entertain :
Albeit fome deal I pipe, rude though it be,
Sufiicient to divert my fheep and mc ; 32
Yet Colinet (and Colinet hath fkill)
Oft guides my fingers on the tuneful quill.
And fain would teach me on what founds to dwell.
And where to fmk a note, and where to fvveil. 36
Argol.
PASTORALS. 23
A R G O L.
Ah, Myco \ half my flock would I bellow.
Should Colinet to me his cunning iliow :
So trim his fonnets are, I pr'ythee, fwain.
Now give us, once, a fample of his llrain : 40
For wonders of that lad the iliepherds fay.
How fweet his pipe, how ravifhing his lay !
The fweetnefs of his pipe and lay rehearfe ;
And alk what boon thou willell for thy verfe. 44
Myco.
Since then thou liH, a mournful fong I chufe :
A mournful fong relieves a mournful Mufe.
Fail by the river on a bank he fate.
To weep the lovely maid's untimely fate, 48
Fair Stella hight : a lovely maid was flie,
Whofe fate he wept, a faithful Ihepherd he.
Axvakey viy pipe ; in e-very note expre/s
Fair Stella's death, and Colinet'' s dijfrefs. cz
" O woeful day ! O, day of woe to me !
*' That ever 1 fhould live fuch day to fee 1
'* That ever ihe could die ! O, moil unkind,
" To go and leave thy Colinet behind ! 56
« From blamelefs love, and plighted troth to go,
« And leave to Colinet a life of woe 1"
Atvakey 7ny pipe ; in e-uery note expre/s
Fair Stella'' s death , and Colinet'' s dijire/s. 60
«* And yet, why blame I her ! Full fain would (he
'« With dying arms have clafp'd herfelf to me :
C 4 -I clafp'd
24 A. P H I L I P S ' S POEMS.
«« I clafp'd her too, but death prov'd over-ftrong ;
** Nor vows nor tears could fleeting life prolong : 64
" Yet how fliall I from vows and tears refrain ?
« And why fhould vows, alas ! and tears be vain 1"
A-u.'akcy my pipe ; in e-very note exprefs
Fair Stella's deaths and Colinet'' s diftrefs. 68
" Aid me to grieve, with bleating moan, my flieep,
<' Aid me, thou ever-flowing ftream, to weep ;
«* Aid me, ye faint, ye hollow v/inds, to figh,
'* And thou, my woe, aflift me thou to die. 72
*' Me flock nor ftream, nor winds nor woes, relieve ;
** She lov'd through life, and I through life will grieve,'*
A^Txake^ ?ny pipe ; /;/ every note exprefs
Fair Stella's deaths and Colinet'' s dijlrefs. 76
*' Ye gentler maids, companions of my fair,
" With dovvn-caft look, and wdth diflievel'd hair,
" All beat the breaft, and wring your hands and m.oan ;
" Her hour, untimely, might have prov'd your own : 80
" Her hour, untimely, help me to lament ;
« And let your hearts at Stella's name relent."
Awakey my pipe ; in e-very 7iote exprefs
Fair Stella^ s death, and Coliiiet's dijlrefs, 84
" In vain th' indearing luftre of your eyes
" We dote upon, and you as vainly prize.
« What though your beauty blefs the faithful fwain,
" And in th' enamour 'd heart like queens ye reign ; 88
** Yet in their prime does death the faireil kill,
*' As ruthlefs winds the tender bloflbms fpill."
A-vjakcj
PASTORALS. 25
AvjakCi my pipe ; in e-very note exprefs
Fair Stella's deaths and Colinet's dijirefs. 92
" Such Stella was ; yet Stella might not live !
«' And what could Colinet in ranfom give ?
" Oh ! if or mufic's voice, or beauty's charm,
« Could milden death, and flay his lifted arm, 96
" My pipe her face, her face my pipe might fave,
*' Redeeming each the other from the grave."
Auuake, my pipe ; in e=very note exprefs
Fair Stella's deaths and Colinet' s dijirefs. lOO
" Ah, fruitlefs wifh ! fell death's uplifted arm
*' Nor beauty can arreft, nor mufic charm.
«' Behold ! oh, baleful fight 1 fee v/here Ihe lies !
** The budding flower, unkindly blafted, dies : 104
*' Nor, though I live the longeil day to mourn,
** Will file again to life and me return.'*
A-xi-ake, my pipe ; in e^very note exprefs
Fair Stella s death y and Colinet'' s dijirefs, \o%
" Unhappy Colinet ! what boots thee now,
^' To weave frefli girlonds for thy Stella's brow ?
" No girlond ever more may Stella wear,
" Nor fee the flowery feafon of tlie year, 1 1 2
^* Nor dance, nor fmg, nor ever fv/eetly fmile,
<' And every toil of Colinet beguile."
A'iKakey my pipe ; in e-uery note exprefs
Fair Stella's deaths and Colinet' s dijirej's, I16
" Throw by the lily, daffodil, and rofe ;
♦^ Wreaths of black yew, and willov/ pale, compofe,
" With
26 A. P H I L I P S ' S POEMS..
" With baneful hemlock, deadly nightfhade, drefs'd,
f' Such chaplets as may vvitnefs thine unreft, 120
" If aught can witnefs : O, ye fhepherds tell,
" When I am dead, no fhepherd lov'd {0 well !'*
A-v:ake, my pipe ; in e-uery note exprefs
Fair Stella's death, and Colinet^s dijlrefs, I 24
" Alack, mv fheep ! and thou, dear fpotlefs lamb,
** By Stella nurs'd, who wean'd thee from the dam,
** What heed give I to aught but to my grief,
^* My whole em-ployment, and my whole relief! 128
" Stray where ye lift, fome happier mafter try :
** Yet once, my flock, was none fo biefs'd as I."
A^jjakc, my pipe ; in e~oery note exprefs
Fair Stella'* s death, and Colinet'* s dijirefs. 1 32
'* My pipe, whofe Toothing found could paffion move,
" And firft taught Stella's virgin heart to love,
'« Shall filent hang upon this blailed oak,
« Whence owls their dirges ling, and ravens croak : 1 36
" Nor lark, nor linnet, Ihall my day delight,
" Nor nightingale fufpend my moan by night :
« The night and day lliall undiftinguifli'd be,
«' Alike to Stella, and alike to me." 140
ISo more, my pipe ; here ceafe it?^ to exprefs
Fair Stella' s death, and Colitiet'' s diftrefs.
Thus, forrowing, did the gentle fhepherd fing.
And urge the valley with his v/ail to ring. 144
And now tliat fheep -hook for my fong I crave.
A R G 0 L.
PASTORALS. 27
A R G O L.
Not this, but one more coftly, ihalt thou have.
Of feafon'd elm, where ftuds of brafs appear.
To fpeak the giver's name, the month, and year ; 148
The hook of polifh'd Heel, the handle torn'd,
And richly by the carver's Ikill adorn'd.
O, Colinct, how Aveet thy grief to hear !
How does thy verfe fabdue the liftening ear ! 152
Soft falling as the Hill, refrelhing dew.
To flake the drought, and herbage to renew :
Not half fo Aveet the midnight winds, which move
In drowfy murmurs o'er the waving grove, 156
Nor valley brook that, hid by alders, fpeeds
O'er pebbles warbling, and through whifpering reeds.
Nor dropping waters, v/hich from rocks dillil.
And welly-grots with tinkling echoes fJl. 160
Thrice happy Colinet, w'h.o can relieve
Heart-anguilh fore, and make it fweet to grieve !
And next to thee fhall Myco bear the bell.
Who can repeat thy peerlei's fong lo well : 164
But fee ! the hills increafmg Ihadows call: ;
The fun, I v/een, is leaving us in halte :
His weakly rays faint glimmer through the v/ood.
And bluey mills arife from yonder flood. 168
M Y c o.
Bid then our dogs to gather in the Iheep.
Good fhepherds, with their flock, betimes ihould fleep.
Who late lies down, thouJ<:now'fl, as late will rile.
And, fluggard-like, to noon -day fnoring lies, 172
While
28 A. PHILIPS'S POEMS.
While in the fold his injur'd ewes complain.
And after dewy paftures bleat in vain.
THE FIFTH PASTORAL.
C U D D Y.
N rural ftrains we firft our mufic try.
And bafhful into woods and thickets fly,
Miftrufting then our fkill ; yet if through time
Our voice, improving, gain a pitch fubiime, 4
Thy growing virtues, Sackville, Ihall engage
My riper verfe, and more afpiring age.
The fun, now mounted to the noon of day.
Began to {hoot diretSl his burning ray ; S
When, with the flocks, their feeders fought the Ihade
A venerable oak wide-fpreading-made :
What Ihould they do to pafs the loitering time ?
As fancy led, each form'd his tale in rhyme : H
And feme the joys, and feme the pains, of love.
And fome to fet out rtrange adventures, ftrove ;
The trade of wizards fome, and Merlin's fkill.
And whence, to charms, fuch empire o'er the will.
Then Cuddy laft (who Cuddy can excel 1 7
In neat device ?) his tale began to tell.
" When fhepherds flourilh'd in Eliza's reign,
« There liv'd in high repute a jolly fwain, 20
f< Young Colm Clout ; v/ho well could pipe and fmg,
" And by his noics invite the lagging fpring.
'' He, as his cuilom was, at leifure laid
*' In woodland bov/er, without a rival play'd, 2^
6 " Soliciting
PASTORALS, 29
*f Soliciting his pipe to warble clear,
*' Enchantment fweet as ever wont to hear
*' Belated wayfarers, from wake or fair
*' Detain'd by mufic, hovering on in air: 28
" Drawn by the magic of th' inticing found,
'^ What troops of mute admirers flock'd around !
** The ileerlings left their food; and creatures, wild
" By Nature form'd, infenfibly grew miid. 32
•' He makes the gathering birds about him throng,
" And loads the neighbouring branches with his fong :
" There, with the crowd, a nightingale of fame,
" Jealous, and fond of praife, to liften came: 36
" She turn'd her ear, and paufe by paufe, with pride,
*' Like echo to the fhepherd's pipe reply'd.
" The fhepherd heard vvith wonder, and again,
" To try her more, renew'd his various firain : 40
*' To all the various ftrain {he plies her throat,
" And adds peculiar grace to every note.
*' If Colin, in complainircg accent grieve,
" Or brilker motion to his meafure give, 44
" If gentle founds he modulate, or ftrong,
*' She, not a little vain, repeats the fong :
** But fo repeats, that Colin half-defpis'd
•' His pipe and fkill, around the country priz'd : 48
•* And fweeteft fongiler of the winged kind,
" What thanks, faid he, what praife s, fhail I find
** To equal thy melodious voice ? In thee
" The rudenefs of my rural fife I fee ; 52
*' From thee I learn no more to vaunt my fkill :
" Aloft in air fhe fate, provoking Hill
« The
3°
A. PHILIPS'S POEMS.
« The vanquiih'd fwain. Provok'd, at laft, he Urove
" To fhovv the little minrtrel of the grove 56
*' His utmoft powers, determin'd once to try
** How art, exerting, might with nature vy ;
" For vy could none with either in their part,
" With her in Nature, nor with him in Art. 60
" He draws -in breath, his rifing breath to fill :
" Throughout the wood his pipe is heard to Ihrill.
" From note to note, in hafte, his fingers fly ;
•' Still more and more the numbers multiply : 64.
" And now they trill, and now they fall and rife,
*' And fvvift and flow they change with fweet furprife.
" Attentive flie doth fcarce the founds retain ;
" But to herfelf firfl: cons the puzzling fl:rain, 6S
" And tracing, heedful, note by note repays
*' The fliepherd in his own harmonious lays,
" Through every changing cadence runs at length,
" And adds in fweetnefs what he wants in fl:rength. 72
" Then Colin threw his fife difgrac'd aflde,
*' While Ihe loud triumph flngs, proclaiming wide
" Her mighty conquefl:, and within her throat
*' Twirls many a wild unimitable note, 76
" To foil her rival. What could Colin more ?
f* A little harp of maple ware he bore :
^' The little harp was old, but newly flrung,
" Which, ufual, he acrofs his flioulders hung. 80
" Now take, delightful bird, my laft farewel,
« He faid, and learn from hence thou doil excel
" No trivial artift : and anon he wound
" The murmuring firings, and order'd every found: 84
«•' Then
PASTORALS. 31
" Then eameft to his inftrument he bends,
*♦' And both hands pliant on the firings extends :
" His touch the ftrings obey, and various move,
" The lower anfwering ilill to thofe above: 83
" His fingers, reftlefs, traverfe to and fro,
*' As in purfuit of harmony they go :
" Now, lightly fkimming, o'er the ftrings they pafs,
'' Like winds which gently brufh the plying grafs, 92
" While melting airs arife at their command :
" And now, laborious, with a weighty hand
*' He fmks into the cords with folemn pace,
" To give the fwelling tones a bolder grace; 96
" And now the left, and now by turns the right,
" Each other chace, harmonious both in flight :
" Then his whole fingers blend a fwarm of founds,
" Till the fweet tumult through the harp rebounds, 100
" Ceafe, Colin, ceafe, thy rival ceafe to vex;
'' The mingling notes, alas ! her ear perplex :
*•' She warbles, diffident, in hope and fear,
*• And hits imperfecl accents here and there, 104
*^ And fain would utter forth fome double tone,
** When foon fhe falters, and can utter none :
" Again fhe tries, and yet again fhe fails ;
'• For ftill the harp's united power prevails. loS
" Then Colin play'd again, and playing fung :
'^ She, vvdth the fatal love of glory ftung,
*' Hears all in pain : her heart begins to fwell :
" In piteous notes fhe fighs, in notes which tell 1 1 2
'' Her bitter anguifh : he, ftill fmging, plies
^' His limber joints ; her forrows higher rife.
" How
32 A. PHILIP S'S PO£MS.
•* How fhail fhe bear a conqueror, who, before,
" No equal through the grove in mufic bore ? 1 16
" She droops, fhe hangs her flagging wings, fhe moans>
" And fetcheth from her breaft melodious groans.
" Opprefs'd with grief at lail too great to quell,
*^ Down, breathlefs, on the guilty harp fhe fell. 120
" Then Colin loud lamented o'er the dead,
" And unavailing tears profufely fhed,
" And broke his wicked firings, and curs'd his Ikiil;
'' And befl to make atonement for the ill, 124
" If, for fuch ill, atonement might be made,
« He builds her tomb beneath a laurel ihade,
" Then adds a verfe, and fets with flowers the ground,
" And makes a fence of winding ofiers round. 128
" A verfe and tomb is all I now can give ;
" And here thy name at leaft, he faid, fhall live."
Thus ended Cuddy with the fetting fun.
And, by his tale, unenvy'd praifes won. 1 3 2
THE SIXTH PASTORAL.
GERON, HOBBINOL, LAN QJJ E T.
G E R O N.
T TOW ftill the fea behold ! how calm the fky !
-■'-'• And how, in fportive chace, the fv/allows fly !
My goats, fecure from harai, fmall tendance need.
While high, on yonder hanging rock, they feed : 4
And here below, the banky fhore along,
Your heifers graze. No^v, then, to ftrive in fong
Prepare.
PASTORALS.
35
Prepare. As eldeft, Hobbinol begin ;
And Lanquet's rival-verfe, by turns, come in. S
Hobbinol.
Let others flake what chofen pledge they will.
Or kid, or lamb, or mazer wrought with Ikill :
For praife we fmg, nor wager ought befide ;
And, whofe the praife, let Geron's lips decide. 12
L A N q^u E T.
To Geron I my voice, and Ikill, commend,
A candid umpire, and to both a friend.
G E RON.
Begin then, boys ; and vary well your fong :
Begin; nor fear, from Geron's fentence, wrong. 16
A boxen hautboy, loud, and fweet of found.
All varnifh'd, and with brazen ringlets bounds
I to the vidor give : no mean reward.
If to the ruder village-pipes compar'd. 29
Hobbinol.
The fnows are melted; and the kindly rain
Defcends on every herb, and every grain :
Soft balmy breezes breathe along the iky;
The bloomy feafon of the year is nigh. 24.
L A N C»^U E T.
The cuckoo calls aloud his wandering love;.
The turtle's moan is heard in every grove;
The paftures change; the warbling linnets fmg:
Prepare to welcome-in the gaudy fpring. 28
Hobbinol.
When locufts, in the ferny bufhes, cry,
Vv'hen ravens pant, and fnakes in caverns lie.
Vol. LVII. D Graze
34 A. PHILIPS^S POEMS,
Graze then in woods, and quit the fhadelefs plain,
Elfe fhall ye prefs the fpungy teat in vain. 3 z
La n q^u e t.
When greens to yellow vary, and ye fee
The ground beftrew'd with fruits of every tree.
And ilormy winds are heard, think winter near.
Nor trull too far to the declining year. 36"
Hob b I N o L.
Woe then, alack 1 befall the fpendthrift fwain.
When froft, and fnow, and hail, and fleet, and rain.
By turns chaftife him, while, through little care.
His flieep, unflielter'd, pine in nipping air. Ap
L A N Q^U E T.
The lad of forecaft then untroubled fees
The white-bleak plains^ and filvery frofted trees :
He fends his flock, and;, clad in homely frize.
In his warm cott the vvintery blafl: defies. 4.i^
Hob b I N o L.
Full fain,. O blefs'd Eliza ! would I praife
Thy maiden-rule, and Albion's golden days :
Then gentle Sidney liv'd, the ftiepherd's friend:
Eternal ble flings on his ftiade attend I 4^
L A N Q^U E T.
Thrice happy fliepherds now ! for Dorfet loves
The country-mufe, and our refounding groves^.
While Anna reigns : O, ever may flie reign I
And bring, on. earth, the golden age again. 52
H o B B I N o L.
I love, in fecret all, a beauteous maid.
And have my love, in fecret all, repaid;
This
PASTORALS.
3 J
This coining night fhe plights her troth to me :
Divine her name, and thou the vidor be. 56
L A N Q^U E T.
Mild as the lamb, unharmfal as the dove.
True as the turtle, is the maid I love :
How we in fecret love, I Ihali not fay :
Divine her name, and I give up the day. €0
H o B B I N o L.
Soft on a cowflip-bank my love and I
Together lay ; a brook ran murmuring by :
A thouland tender things to me Ihe faid ;
And I a thoufand tender things repaid. 64
L A N Q^U E T.
In fummer-fhade, behind the cocking hay.
What kind endearing words did Ihe not fay !
Her lap, with apron deck'd, ihe fondly fpread.
And Ilrok'd my cheek, and lull'd my leaning head. 6B
- H O B B I N O L.
Breathe foft, ye winds; ye waters, gently flow;
Shield her, ye trees ; ye flowers, around her grow :
Ye fvvains, I beg you, pafs in filence by;
My love, in yonder vale^ afleep does lie, 72
L A xV Q^U E T.
Once Delia flept on eafy mofs reclin'd,
Ker lovely limbs half bare, and rude the wind:
I fmooth'd her coats, and ftole a filent kifs :
Condemn me, fliepherds, if I did amifs. 76
H O B E I N o L.
As Marian bath'd, by chance I pafled by;
She blufli'd, and at me glanc'd a fidelong eye :
D 2 Then,
56 A. PHILIPS'S POEMS.
Then, cowering in the treaclierous ftream, fhe try'd
Her tempting form, yet ftill in vain, to hide. So
L A N Q^U E T.
As I, to cool me, bath'd one fultry day.
Fond Lydia, lurking, in the fedges lay :
The wanton laugh'd, and feem'd in hafle to fly.
Yet oft flie {lopt, and oft {[\c tum*d her eye. 84
H O B B I N O L.
When firft I faw (would 1 had never feen ! )
Young Lyfet lead the dance on yonder green.
Intent upon her beauties, as fhe mov'd.
Poor heedlefs v/retch ! at unawares I lov'd. 88
L A N Q^U E T.
When Lucy decks with flowers her fwelling breall.
And on her elbow leans, difrcmbling reft.
Unable to refrain my madding mind.
Nor herds, nor pafl;ure, worth my care I find. 92
H O B B I N O L.
Come, Rofallnd, O come ! for, wanting thee.
Our peopled vale a defert is to me.
Come, Rofalind, O come 1 My brinded kine.
My fnowy fheep, my farm, and all, are thine. 96
L A N Q^U E T.
Come, Rofalind, O come ! Here fliady bovvers.
Here are cool fountains, and here fpringing flowers :
Come, Rofalind ! Here ever let us ftay.
And fweetly wafte the live -long time away. 100
H O B B I N O L.
In vain the feafons of the moon I know.
The force of healing herbs, and where they grow:
No herb there is, no feafon, to remove
From my fond heart the racking pains of love. 104
L A N-
PASTORALS. 37
L A N Q^U E T.
What profits me, that I in charms have fkill.
And ghofts, and goblins, order as I will.
Yet have, with all my charms, no power to lay
The fprite that breaks my quiet night and day ? io8
H O B B I N O L.
O, that, like Colin, I had (kill in rhymes.
To purchafe credit with fucceeding times !
Sweet Colin Clout ! who never, yet, had peer ;
Who fung through all the feafons of the year. j 1 2
L A N Q^U E T.
Let me, like Merlin, fmg : his voice had power
To free the 'clipfmg moon at midnight hour :
And, as he fung, the Fairies with their queen.
In mantles blue, came tripping o'er the green. 116
HOBBINOL.
Lafl eve of May did I not hear them fmg.
And fee their dance ? And I can {hew the ring.
Where, hand in hand, they fhift their feet fo light :
The grafs fprings greener from their tread by night. 1 20
L A N Q^U E T.
But haft thou feen their king, in rich array,
Fam'd Oberon, with damafk'd robe fo gay.
And gemmy crown, by moonfliine fparkling far.
And azure fceptre, pointed with a ftar ? 1 24
G E R o N.
Here end your pleafmg ftrife. Both vidors are;
And both with Colin may, in rhyme, compare.
'A boxen hautboy, loud, and f.veet of found.
All varnilh'd, and with brazen ringlets bound, 128
D 3 To
3S A. PHILIPS'S POEMS.
To each I give. A mizzling mift defcends
Adown that ileepy rock : and this way tends
Yon diftant rain. Shoreward the veffels ftrive ;
And, fee, the boys their flocks to flielter drive. 132
THE STRAY NYMPH.
/^ EASE your mufic, gentle fwains :
^^ Saw ye Delia crofs the plains ?
Every thicket, every grove.
Have I rang'd, to find my love : 4
A kid, a lamb, my flock, I give.
Tell me only, doth fhe live ?
White her ikin as mountain-fnow ;
In her cheek the rofes blow; 8
And her eye is brighter far
Than the beamy morning ftar.
When her ruddy lip ye view,
*Tis a berry moift with dew : I z
And her breath, oh, 'tis a gale
Faffing o'er a fragrant vale.
Faffing, when a friendly ihower
Frefhens every herb and flower. 16
Wide her bofom opens, gay
As the primrofe-dell in May,
Sweet as violet-borders growing
Over fountains ever- flowing. ' 20
Xike the tendrils of the vine.
Do her auburn treffes twine,
Glofly
PASTORALS. 39
GlofTy ringlets all behind
Streaming buxom to the wind, 24
When along the lawn fhe bounds.
Light, as hind before the hounds :
And the youthful ring fhe fires,
Hopelefs in their fond defires, .-28,
As her flitting feet advance.
Wanton in the winding dance.
Tell me, Ihepherds, have ye feen
My delight, my love, my queen ? ' 32
THE HAPPY SWAIN,
T Y AVE ye feen the morning iky,
•*• ■■• When the dawn prevails on high.
When, anon, fome purply ray
Gives a fample of the day, .4
When, anon, the lark, on wing.
Strives to foar, and ftrains to fmg ?
Have ye feen th' ethereal blue
Gently ftiedding filvery dew, 8
Spangling o'er the filent green.
While the nightingale, unfeen.
To the moon and ftars, full bright,
Lonefome chants the hymn of night? 12
Have ye feen the broider'd May
All her fcented bloom difplay.
Breezes opening, every hour,
This^ and that, expefting flower, 16
D 4 While
40 A. PHILIPS'S POEMS.
While the mingling birds prolong.
From each bulh, the vernal fong ?
Have ye feen the damafk-role
Her unfully'd blufh difclofe, 20
Or the lily's dewy bell.
In her glofly white, excel!.
Or a garden vary'd o'er
With a thoufand glories more ? 24
By the beauties thefe difplay.
Morning, evening, night, or day.
By the pleafures thefe excite,
Endlefs fources of delight! 28
judge, by them, the joys I find.
Since my Rofalind was kind.
Since Ihe did herfelf relign
To my vows, for ever mine, 32
EPISTLES,
[ 41 ]
EPISTLES.
TO A FRIEND,
WHO
DESIRED ME TO WRITE ON THE DEATH OF
KIKG WILLIAM.
April 20, 1702.
^T'RUST me, dear George, could I in verfe but fhow
-■- What forrow I, what forrow all men, owe
To NafTau's fate, or could I hope to raife
A fong proportion'd to the monarch's praife, ^
Could 1 his merits, or my grief, exprefs.
And proper thoughts in proper language drefs.
Unbidden ihould my pious numbers flow.
The tribute of a heart o'ercharg'd with woe j 8
But, rather than prophane his facrcd hearfe
With languid praifes, and unhallow'd verfe.
My fighs I to myfelf in filence keep.
And inwardly, with fecret anguilh, weep. 1 2
Let Halifax's Mufe (he knew him well)
His virtues to facceeding ages tell.
Let him, who fung the warrior on the Boyne,
(Provoking Dorfet in the tafk to join) 16
And (hcw'd the hero more than man before.
Let him th' illuftrious mortal's fate deplore ;
A mourn.
42 A. P H I L I P S ' S POEMS.
A mournful theme : while, on raw pinions, I
But flutter, and make weak attempts to fly : 20
Content, if, to divert my vacant time,
I can but like fome love-fick fopling rhyme.
To fome kind-hearted miftrefs make my court.
And, like a modifli wit, in fonnet fport. 24
Let others, more ambitious, rack their brains
In polifh'd fentiments, and iabour'd Itrains :
To blooming Phyllis I a fong compofe.
And, for a rhyme, compare her to the rofe; 28
Then, while my fancy works, I write down morn.
To paint the blufli that does her cheek adorn.
And, when the whitenefs of her Ikin I fliow.
With ecftafy bethink myfelf of fnow. 32
Thus, vv'ithout pains, I tinkle in the clofe.
And fvveeten into verfe infipid profe.
The country fcrapcr, when he wakes his crowd.
And makes the tortur'd cat-gut fqueak aloud, 36
Is often ravifli'd, and in tranfport loll :
What more, my friend, can fam'd Corelli boaft.
When harmony herfelf from heaven defcends.
And on the artiil*s moving bow attends ? 40
Why then, in making verfes, ihould I ilrain
For wit, and of Apollo beg a vein ?
Who lludy Horace and the Stagy rite ?
Why cramp my dulnefs, and in torment write ? 44
Let me tranfgrefs by nature, nor by rule.
An artlefs idiot, not a lludy 'd fool,
A Withers, not a Rymer, iince I aim
At nothing lefs, in writing, than a jiame. 48-
6 FROM
[ 43 ]
PROM HOLLAND, TO A FRIEND IN
ENGLAND, IN THE YEAR 1703.
T7ROM Utrecht's filent walks, by winds, I fend
-■- Health and kind wifhes to my abfent friend.
The winter fpent, I feel the poet's fire ;
The fun advances, and the fogs retire : 4
The genial fpring unbinds the frozen earth.
Dawns on the trees, and gives the primrofe birth.
Loos'd from their friendly harbours, once again
Confederate fleets afTemble on the main : 8
The voice of war the gallant foldier wakes ;
And weeping Cloe parting kiflTes takes.
On new-plum 'd wings the Roman eagle foars ;
The Belgick lion in full fury roars. 12
Difpatch the leader from your happy coaft.
The hope of Europe, and Britannia's boaft :
O, Marlborough, come ! freih laurels for thee rife !
One conqueft more ; and Gallia will grow wife. 16
Old Lewis makes his lail effort in arms.
And fhews how, ev'n in age, ambition charms.
Meanwhile, my friend, the thickening fhades I haunt.
And fmooth canals, and after rivulets pant : 20
The fmooth canals, alas, too lifelefs fhow !
Nor to the eye, nor to the ear, they flow.
Studious of eafe, and fond of humble things,
Belov/ the fmiles, below the frowns of kings, 24
Thanks to my ftars, I prize the fweets of life :
No fleeplefs nights I count, no days of ilrife.
Content
44 A. PHILIPS 'S POEMS.
Content to live, content to die, unknown.
Lord of myfelf, accountable to none ; "28
I fleep, I wake, I drink ; I fometimes love ;
I read, I write ; I fettle, and I rove.
When, and where-e'er, I pleafe : thus, every hour
Gives fome new proof of my defpotic power. 32
Ail, that I will, I can ; but then, I will
As reafon bids ; I meditate no ill ;
And, pleas'd with things wliich in my level lie.
Leave it to madmen o*er the clouds to fly. 36
But this is all romance, a dream to you.
Who fence and dance, and keep the court in view.
White ftafFs and truncheons, feals and golden keys.
And filver ilars, your towering genius pleafe : 40
Such manly thoughts in every infant rife.
Who daily for fome tinfel trinket cries.
Go on, and profper. Sir : but firfl from me
Learn your own temper ; for I know you free, 44
You can be honefl ; but you cannot bow.
And cringe, beneath a fupercilious brow :
You cannot fawn ; your llubborn foul recoils
At bafenefs ; and your blood too highly boils. 48
From nature fome fubmiffive tempers have ;
Unkind to you, flie form'd you not a flave.
A courtier muft be fupple, full of guile.
Mull learn to praife, to flatter, to revile, cz
The good, the bad, an enemy, a friend.
To give falfe hopes, and on falfe hopes depend.
Go on, and profper. Sir : but learn to hide
Your upright fpirit ; 't will be confu-ued pride. 56
The
EPISTLES. 45
The fplendour of a court Is all a cheat ;
You muft be fervile, ere you can be great.
Belides, your ancient patrimony wailed.
Your youth run out, your fchemes of grandeur blafted.
You may perhaps retire in difcontent.
And curfe your patron, for no llrange event :
The patron will his innocence proteft.
And frown in earnell, though he fmil'd in jeft. 64.
Man, only from himfelf, can fuiFer wrong ;
His reafon fails, as his defires grow llrong :
Hence, wanting ballall:, and too full of fail.
He lies expos 'd to every riling gale. 68
From youth to age, for happinefs he's bound :
He fplits on rocks, or runs his bark aground.
Or, wide of land, a defert ocean views.
And, to the laft, the flying port purfues, 72
Yet, to the laft, the port he does not gain.
And dying finds, too late, he liv'd in vam.
TO THE EARL OF DORSET.
Copenhagen, March 9, 1709.
jC'R.OAl frozen climes, and endlefs tradls of fnow,
■^ From ftreams which northern winds forbid to flow.
What prefent fliall the Mufe to Dorfet bring.
Or how, fo near the Pole, attempt to flng ? 4
The hoary winter here conceals from fight
All pleaflng objefls which to verfe invite.
The
46 A. PHILIPS'S POEMS.
The hills and dales, and the delightful woods.
The flowery plains, and fdver-ftreaming floods, 8
By fnow difguis'd, in bright confufion lie.
And with one dazzling wafte fatigue the eye.
No gentle breathing breeze prepares the fpring.
No birds within the defert region ling. 1 2
The fhips, unmov'd, the boillerous winds defy.
While rattling chariots o'er the ocean fly.
The vaft Leviathan wants room to play.
And fpout his waters in the face of day. i6
The ftarving wolves along the main fea prowl.
And to the moon in icy valleys howl.
O'er many a fliining league the level main
Here fpreads itfelf into a glafiTy plain : 20
There folid billows of enormous flze,
Alps of green ice, in wild diforder rife.
And yet but lately have I feen, ev'n here.
The winter in a lovely drefs appear. 24
Ere yet the clouds let fall the treafur'd fnow.
Or winds begun through hazy fkies to blow.
At evening a keen eailern breeze arofe.
And the defcending rain unfully'd froze. 28
Soon as the filent Ihades of night withdrew.
The ruddy morn difclos'd at once to view
The face of Nature in a rich difguife.
And brighten'd every objeft to my eyes : 32
For every fhrub, and every blade of grafs.
And every pointed thorn, feem'd wrought in glafs ;
In pearls and rubies rich the hawthorns fliov/.
While through the ice the crimfon berries glow. 36 _
The
EPISTLES. 47
The thick-fprung reeds, which watery marfhes yield,
Seem'd polifh'd lance? in a hoftile field.
The flag, in limpid currents, with furprize.
Sees cryital branches on his forehead rife : 40
The fpreading oak, the beech, and towering pine,
Glaz'd over, in the freezing sther fhine.
The frighted birds the rattling branches fhun.
Which wave and glitter in the diHant fun. 44
When if a fudden gufl of wind arife.
The brittle forell into atoms flies.
The crackling wood beneath the tempell bends.
And in a fp angled fhower the profpedl ends : 48
Or, if a fouthern gale the region warm.
And by degrees unbind the v/intery charm.
The traveller a miry country fees.
And journeys fad beneath the dropping trees*. 52
Like fome deluded peafant. Merlin leads
Through fragrant bov/ers, and through delicious meads^
While here inchanted gardens to him rife.
And airy fabricks there attrad his eyes, 56
His wandering feet the magic paths purfue.
And, while he thinks the fair illufion true.
The tracklefs fcenes difperfe in fluid air.
And Vvoods, and wilds, and thorny ways appear, 6a
A tedious road the v/eary wretch returns.
And, as he goes, the tranfient vifion mourns.
To
48 A. PHILI1>S»S POEMS.
To the Right Honourable Charles Lord
Halifax, one of the Lords Juftices appointed
by his Majefty. 17 14.
T) A T R O N of verfe, O Halifax, attend,
-■- The Mufe's favourite, and the Poet's friend !
Approaching joys my ravilh'd thoughts infpire ;
I feel the tranfport ; and my foul 's on fire ! 4
Again Britannia rears her awful head :
Her fears, tranfplanted, to her foes are fled.
Again her ftandard fhe difplays to view ;
And all its faded lilies bloom -anew. 8
Here beauteous Liberty falutes the fight.
Still pale, nor yet recover'd of her fright,
Whilll here Religion, fmiling to the fkies.
Her thanks exprefTes with up-lifted eyes. 12
But v^'ho advances next, with chearful grace,
Joy in her eye, and plenty in her face ?
A wheaten garland does her head adorn,
O Property ! O goddefs, Englifli-born ! 16
Where haft thou been ? How did the wealthy mourn !
The bankrupt nation figh'd for thy return.
Doubtful for whom her fpreading funds were filPd,
Her fleets were freighted, and her fields were till'd. 20
No longer now fliall France and Spain combin'd.
Strong in their golden Lidies, awe mankind.
Brave Catalans, who for your freedom ftrive.
And in your fliatter'd bulwarks yet furvive, 24
For
EPISTLES. 49
For you alone, worthy a better fate,
O, may this happy change not come too late !
Great in your fufferings 1— But, my Mule, forbear j
Nor damp the public gladnefs with a tear: 28
The hero has receiv'd their juft complaint,
Grac'd with the name of our fam'd patron-faint:
Like him, with pleafure he foregoes his reit.
And longs, like him, to fuccour the diflrefs'd. 32
Firm to his friends, tenacious of his word.
As juflice calls, he draws or llieaths the fword:
Matur'd by thought, his councils fliall prevail;
Nor fliall his promife to his people fail. 36
He comes, defire of nations ! England's boall 1
Already has he reach'd the Belgian coaft.
Our great deliverer comes ! and with him brings
A progeny of late-fucceeding kings, 40
Fated to triumph o'er Britannia's foes
In diftant years, and fix the world's repofe.
The floating fquadrons now approach the fliore ;
Loil in the failors ihouts, the cannons roar : 4^
And now, behold, the fovereign of the main.
High on the deck, amidlt his fliining train.
Surveys the fubjeft flood. An eailern gale
Plays through the flirouds, and fwells in every fail : 4S
Th' obfequious waves his new dominion own.
And gently waft their monarch to his throne.
Now the glad Britons hail their king to land.
Hang on the rocks, and blacken all the flirand: 52.
But who the filent extaCy can fliow, '
The palfions which in nubler blofoms glow f Ij
Vol. LVH. E Who
50 A. PHILIPS'S POEMS.
Wlio can defcribe the godlike patriot's zeal ?
Or who, my Lord, your generous joys reveal ? 56
Ordam'd, once more, our treafure to advance,
Retrieve our trade, and fmk the pride of France,
Once more the long-negle(^ed arts to raife>
And form each rifmg genius for the bays. 60^
Accept the prefent of a grateful fong ;
This prelude may provoke the learned throng :
To Cam and Ifis fhali the joyful news.
By me convey'd, awaken every Mufe. 64
Ev'n now the vocal tribe in verfe confpires ;
Arid I already hear their founding lyres :
To them the mighty labour 1 refign.
Give up the Theme, and quit the tuneful Nine. 68
So v/hen the fpring firil frailes among the trees,.
And blcfibms open to the vernal breeze.
The watchful nightingale, Vv'ith early ftrains.
Summons the warblers of tlic woods and plains, 7:^
But drops her mulick, when the choir appear.
And liflens to the concert of the year.
To the Honourable James Cracgs, Efq; Secre-
tary at War, at Hampton-Court. 1717-
THOUGH Britain*s hardy troops demand your care.
And chearful friends your hours of leifure fhare;
O, Craggs, for candour known ! indulge awhile
My fond defire, and on. my labour fmile : j^^
Nor count it always an abufe of time
To read a long epiftle^ though in rhyme,.
^ ■■ To.
EPISTLES. 51
To you I fend my thoughts, too long confinM,
And eafe the burden of a loyal mind ; 8
To you my fccret tranfports I difclofe.
That rife above the languid powers of profe.
But, while thefe artlefs numbers you perufe.
Think 'tis my heart that dictates, not the Mufe ; 12
My heart, v/hich at the name of Brunfwick fires.
And no affiilance from the Mufe requires.
Believe me. Sir, your breaft, that glows with zeal
For George's glory, and the public weal, 1 5
Your breail alone feels more pathetic heats;
Your heart alone with ftrongcr raptures b^ats.
When I review the great examples pall.
And to the former ages join the lall; 20
Still, as the godlike heroes to me rife.
In arms triumphant, and in councils wife.
The king is ever prefent to my mind ;
His greatnefs, trac'd in every page, I find: 24.
The Greek and Roman pens his virtues tell.
And under fliiriing names on Brunfwick dwell.
At Hampton while he breathes untainted air.
And fe ems, to vulgar eyes, devoid of care ; zS
The Britilh Mufes to the grove will prefs.
Tune their melodious harps, and claim accefs :
But let them not too ralhly touch the firings ;
For fate allows no folitude to kings. ^2
Hail to the ihades, where William, great in arms,
Re-tir'd from conqueft to Maria's charms !
Where George ferene in majefiy appears.
And plana the wonders of fucceeding years ! 36 "
E 2 There,
5^ A. P H I L I P S ' S POEMS.
There, as he walks, his comprehenfive mind
Surveys the globe, and takes-in all mankind:
While, Britain, for thy (ake he wears the crown ;
To fpread thy power as wide as his renown : 40
To make thee umpire of contending Hates,
And poife the balance in the world's debates.
From the fmooth terrafs as he cafts his eye.
And fees the current fea-ward rolling by ; 44
What fchemes of commerce rife in his defigns !
Pledges of wealth ! and unexhauftcd mines !
Through winds and waves^ beneath inclement fkies.
Where flars, diftinguifli'd by no name, arife, 48.
Our fleets fhall undifcover'd lands explore.
And a new people hear our cannons roar.
The riv^ers long in ancient fiory fam'd.
Shall flow obfcure, nor with the Thames be naom'd: 52
Nor Ihall our poets copy from their praife.
And Nymphs and Syrens to thy honour raife;
Nor make thy banks with Tritons fliells refound.
Nor bind thy brows with humble fedges round: 56
But paint thee as thou art; a peopled llream 1
The boaft of merchants, and the failois theme !
Whofe fpreading floods unnumber'd jQiips fullain.
And pour whole towns afloat into the main ; 60
While the redundant feas waft up frefli ftores.
The daily tribute of far-diftant ftiores.
Back to thy fource I try thy fdver-train.
That gently winds through many a fertile plain; 64
Where flocks and lowing herds in plenty feed.
And Ihepherds tune at eafe the vocal reed:
Ere ■!
EPISTLES. 53
Ere yet thy waters meet the briny tide,
.And freighted vefTels down thy channel ride; 68
Ere vet thy billows leave their banks behind,
S^vell into ftate, and foam before the wind :
I'hy fovereign's emblem ! in thy courfe compleat !
Vv'hen I behold him in his lov'd retreat, 72
Where rural fcenes their pleafmg views difclofe,
A fylvan deity the monarch Ihows ;
And if he only knew the woods to grace,
To rouze the ftag, and animate the chace : '^S
V.'hile e\"ery hour, from thence, his high commands.
By fpeedy winds convey'd to various lands.
Control aitairs; give weighty councils birth;
And fway the mighry rulers of the earth. 80
Were he, our ifland's glory and defence.
To reign unactive, at the w^crld's expence ;
Say, generous Craggs, who then fhould quell the rage
Of lawiefs faction, and reform the age ? 84
Who {Viculd our dear-bought liberties maintain ?
Who fix our leagues with France, and treat with Spain .?
Who check the headftrong Swede; afTuage the Czar;
Secure our peace, and quench the northern war? 88
The Turk, though he the Chriilian name defies.
And curfes Eugene, yet fi-om Eugene Hies,
His caufe to Brunfwick's equity dare trull ;
He knows him valiant, and concludes him juH; 92
He knows his fame in early youth acquir'd,
Vv hen turban'd hofts before his fvvord retir'd.
Thus while his influence to the poles extends.
Or where the day begins, or where it ends, 96
E 3 Par
54 A. P H I L I P S ' S POEMS.
far from our coafls he drives off all alarms;
And thofe his power proteds, his goodnefs charms.
Great in himfelf, and undebas'd with pride,
I'he fovcreign lays his regal Hate afide, lOO
Pleas'd to appear without the bright difguife
Of pomp ; and on his inborn worth relies.
His fubjefls are his guefts ; and daily boall
The condefcenfion of their royal hoft : 104
"While crowds fucceeding crowds on either hand,
A ravifh'd multitude, admiring ftand.
His manly wit and fenfe, with candour join'd.
His fpeech with every elegance refm'd, 108
His winning afpefl, his becoming eafe.
Peculiar graces all, confpire to pleafe.
And render him to every heart approv'd;
The king refpeded, and the man belov'd. 112
Nor is his force of genius lefs admir'd.
When moll from, crowds or public cares retir'd.
The learned arts, by turns, admittance find ;
At once unbend and exercife his mind. 1 16
The fecret fprings of Nature, long conceal'd.
And to the wife by flow degrees reveal 'd,
(Delightful fcarch !) his piercing thought defcries.
Oft through the concave azure of the iHes 1 20
His foul delights to range, a boundlefs fpace.
Which myriads of celeftial glories grace ;
Worlds behind worlds, that deep in aether lye.
And funs, that twinkle to the diflant eye ; 124
Or call them flars, on which our fates depend.
And every ruling liar is Brunfwick's friend.
6 Soon
EPISTLES. 55
Soon as the rifmg fun {hoots o'er the ftream.
And gilds the palace wrth a ruddy beam, 128
You to the healthful chace attend the king.
And hear the forell with the huntfmen ring :
Vv'hile in the dully town we rule the flate.
And from Gazettes determine England's fate. 132
Our groundlefs hopes and groundlefs fears prevail.
As artful brokers comment on the mail.
Deafned with news, with politics oppreft,
I wiih the wind ne'er vary'd from the weft. 136
Secure, on George's councils I rely.
Give up my cares, and Britain's foes defy.
What though cabals are form'd, and impious leagues ?
Though Rome fills Europe with her dark intrigues? 140
His vigilance, on every ftate intent.
Defeats their plots, and over-rules th' event.
But whither do my vain endeavours tend?
Or how fhall I mV ralh attempt defend? 144
Divided in my choice, from praife to praife
I rove, bewilder'd in the pleafmg maze.
One virtue mark'd, another I purfue.
While yet another rifes to my view. 148
Unequal to the tafk, too late I iind
The growing theme unfinifli'd left behind.
Thus, the deluded bee, in hopes to drain
At once the thym^y treafure of the plain, 1 5 2
Wide ranging on her little pinions toils.
And fkims o'er hundred flowers for one fhe fpoils :
When, foon o'erburden'd with the fragrant weight.
Homeward ihe flies, and flags beneath her freight. 156
E 4 TO
36 A. P H I L I P S ' S POEMS.
TO LORD CARTERET,
Departing from Dublin. 1726.
BEHOLD, Britannia waves her flag on high.
And calls forth breezes from the weftern fky.
And beckons to her fon, and fmooths the tide.
That does Hibernia from her cliffs divide. 4
Go, Carteret, go ; and, v/ith thee, go along
The nation's blefiing, and the poet's fong;
Loud acclamations, with melodious lays.
The kindell wifhes, and fmcereft praife. S
Go, Carteret, go; and bear my joys away!
So fpeaks the Mule, that fain would bid thee flay :
So fpoke the virgin to the youth unkind.
Who gave his vows, and canvafs, to the wind, 1 2
And promis'd to return ; but never more
Did he return to the Threician fliore.
Go, Carteret, go : alas, a tedious while
Kafl thou been abfent from thy mother-ille ; 16
A flow-pac'd train of months to thee and thine,
A flight of mom.ents to a heart like mine.
That feels perfefticns, and reflgns with pain
Enjoyments I may never know again. 20
O, while mine eye purfues the fading fails.
Smooth roll, ye waves, and fteady breathe, ye gales.
And urge with gentle fpeed to Albion's flrand
A houfliold fair, amidft the faireft land, 24
In every decency of life polite,
A freight cf virtues, wafting from my fight:
And
EPISTLES. 57
And now farewel, O early in renown,
lllullrious, young, in labours for the crown, 28
Juft, and benign, and vigilant, in power.
And elegant to grace the vacant hour.
Relaxing fweet ! Nor are we born to wear
The brow Hill bent, and give up life to care : 3 2
And thou, mild glory, beaming round his fame,
Francifca, thou, his firll:, his latell flame ;
Parent of bloom ! In pleafmg arts refin*d !
Farewel thy hand, and voice, in mufic join'd ; 36
Thy courtefy, as foothing as thy fong.
And fmiles foft-gleaming on the courtly throng :
And thou, Chariffa, hafteiiing to thy prime,
And Carolina, cliiding tardy Time, 40
Who every tender wilh of mine divide.
For whom I llrung the lyre, once laid afide.
Receive, and bear in mind, my fond farewell.
Thrive on in life ! and, thriving on, excell 1 4,^
Accept this token, Carteret, of good-will.
The voice of nature, undebas'd by ilcill,
Thefe parting numbers, cadenc'd by my grief.
For thy lov'd fake, and for my own relief, 48
If aught, alas, thy abfence may relieve.
Now I am left, perhaps, through life to grieve :
Yet would I hope, yet hope I know not why,
(But hopes and wiihes in one balance lie) cz
'I'hou may 'It revilit, with thy wonted fmiles,
Icrna, ifland fet around with iflcs :
May the fame heart, that bids thee now adieu.
Salute thy fails, and hail thee into view ! 56
■ ■ ' ODES.
[ 58 3
O D E
S O N (
I.
FR O M White's and WiU's
To purling rills
The love -lick Strephon flies ;
There, full of woe.
His numbers flow.
And all in rhyme he dies.
11.
The fair coquet.
With feign'd regret.
Invites him back to town ;
But, when in tears
The youth appears.
She meets him with a frown.
III.
Full oft the maid
This prank had play'd,
'Till angry Stephon fvvore.
And, v/hat is flrange.
Though loth to change.
Would ne^'er fee her more.
SONG.
ODES. 59^
; O N G.
*! ITT" H Y we love, and why we hate,
^ ^ Is not granted us to know :
Random chance, or wilful fate.
Guides the Ihaft from Cupid's bow.
II.
If on me Zelmda frown,
Madnefs 'tis in me to grieve :
Since her will is not her own.
Why fhould I uneafy live !
III.
If I for Zelinda die.
Deaf to poor Mizella's cries,
Afk not me the reafon why :
Seek the riddle in the fkies.
TO SIGNORA CUZZONL
May 25, 1724.
T I T T L E Syren of the llage,
-*— ' Charmer of an idle age.
Empty warbler, breathing lyre,
. Wanton gale of fond defire, a
■ Bane of every manly art.
Sweet enfeebler of the heart !
O, too
6o. A. PHI LI PS'S. POEMS.
O, too pleafing in thy ftrain.
Hence, to fouthern climes again ;,
Tuneful mirdiief, vocal fpell.
To tliis ifland bid farewell ;
Leave us as v/e ought to be.
Leave the Britons rough and free. ]
To the Memory of the late
EARL OF HALIFAX.
June 30, 1718.
^«T7EEPING o'er thy facred urn,
^ ^ Ever ihall the Mufes mourn ;
Sadly {hall their numbers flow.
Ever elegant in woe.
Thoufands, nobly born, fhall die,
Thoufands in oblivion lie.
Names, which leave no trace behind.
Like the clouds before the wind.
When the duiky Ihadows pafs.
Lightly fleeting o'er the grafs.
But, O Halifax, thy name
Shall through ages rife in fame : ]
Sweet remembrance flialt thou find.
Sweet in every noble mind.
To
ODES. 6i
To the Honourable
MISS CARTERET.
T> LOOM of beauty, early flower
-'-' Of the blisful bridal bower.
Thou, thy parents pride and care,
Faireft offspring of the fair, 4
Lovely pledge of mutual love,
Angel feeming from above.
Was it not thou day by day
Doft thy very fex betray, S
Female more and more appear.
Female, more than angel dear.
How to fpeak thy face and mien,
(Soon too dangerous to be feen) 1 2
How ihall I, or ihall the Mufe,
Language of refemblance chufe ?
Language like thy mien and face,
Full of fweetnefs, full of grace 1 16
By the next returning fpring,
When again the linnets fmg.
When again the lambkins play.
Pretty fportlings full of May, 20
When the meadows next are feen.
Sweet enamel ! white and green.
And the year in frefh attire.
Welcomes every gay defire, 24
Blooming on fhalt thou appear
More inviting than the year.
Fairer
6z A. PHILIPS^S POEMS.
Fairer fight than orchard fhows.
Which befide a river blows : 28
Yet, another fpring I fee.
And a brighter bloom in thee :
And another round of time.
Circling, ftill improves thy prime : 32
And, beneath the vernal fkies.
Yet a verdure more fhall rife.
Ere thy beauties, kindling flow.
In each finifli'd feature glov/, 36
Ere, in fmiles and in dildain.
Thou exert thy maiden reign,
Abfolute to fave, or kill.
Fond beholders, at thy will. 40
Then the taper-moulded walle
With a fpan of ribbon brac'd.
And the fwell of either breaft.
And the v/ide high-vaulted chell, 44
And the neck fo white and round.
Little neck with brilliants bound.
And the ftore of charms which ftiine
Above, in lineaments divine, 48
Crowded in a narrow fpace
To complete the defperate face,
Thefe alluring powers, and more.
Shall enamour 'd youths adore ; 52
Thefe, and more, in courtly lays.
Many an aking heart ihall praife.
Kappy thrice, and thrice again,
Happiell he of happy men, . . . ' 56
Who,
ODES. 63
Who, in courtfliip greatly fped.
Wins the damfel to his bed.
Bears the virgin-prize away.
Counting life one nuptial day : 60
For the dark-brown duik of hair.
Shadowing thick thy forehead fair,
Down the veiny temples grov/mg.
O'er the Hoping fhoulders flowing, 64
And the fmoothly pencil'd brow.
Mild to him in every vow.
And the fringed lid below.
Thin as thinneft bloflbms blow, ^S
And the hazely-lucid eye.
Whence heart-winning glances Ry,
And that cheek of health, o'erfpread
With foft-blended white and red, 72.
And the witching fmiles which break
Round thofe lips, which fweetly fpeak.
And thy gentlenefs of mind.
Gentle from a gentle kind, 76-
Thefe endowments, heavenly dower !
Brought him in the promised hour.
Shall for ever bind him to thee.
Shall renew him Hill to woo thee. 89'
On
64 A. P H I L I P S ' S POEMS.
On the Death of the Right Honourable
WILLIAM EARL COWPER. 1723.
STROPHE I.
"^niT A K E the Britifh harp again,
^ ^ To a fad melodious ftrain ;
Wake the harp, whofe every firing.
When Halifax refign'd his breath, 4
Accus'd inexorable death ;
For I, once more, mull in afflidlion fmg.
One fong of forrow more bellow.
The burden of a heart o'ercharg'd with woe : 8
Yet, O my foul, if aught may bring relief.
Full many, grieving, Ihall applaud thy grief.
The pious verfe, that Cowper does deplore.
Whom all the boalled powers of verfe cannot rellore.
ANTISTROPHE I.
Not to her, his fondell care.
Not to his lov'd offspring fair.
Nor his country ever dear.
From her, from them, from Britain torn r 16
With her, with them, does Britain mourn :
His name, from every eye, calls forth a tear ;
And, intermingling, fighs with praife.
All good men wilh the number of his days 20
Had
I
ODES. 65
Had been to him twice told, and twice again.
In that feal'd book, where all things which pertain
To mortal man, whatever things befall.
Are from eternity confirm'd, beyond recall: 24
E P O D E I,
\^Tiere every lofs, and every gain.
Where every grief^ and every joy.
Every pleafure, every pain.
Each bitter, and each fweet alloy, 28
To us uncertain though they flow.
Are pre-ordain'd, and fix'd, above.
Too wretched flate, did man foreknow
Thofe ills, which man cannot remove 1 32
Vain is wifdom for preventing
What the wifell live lamenting.
STROPHE II.
Hither fent, who knows the day
When he ihall be calPd away ? 36
Various is the term aflign'd :
An hour, a day, fome months, or years.
The breathing foul on earth appears :
But, through the fwift fucceffion of mankind, 40
Swarm after fvvarm ! a bufy race.
The ftrength of cities, or of courts the grace.
Or who in camps delight, or v/ho abide
DiiFus'd o'er lands, or float on oceans wide, 44
Of them, though many here long-lingering dwell.
And fee their children's children,yet, how few excel 1
Vol. L VII, F A N T I>
66 A. PHILIPS' S POEMS.
ANTISTROPHE II.
Here we come, and hence we go.
Shadows palTing to and fro, 4S
Seen a while, forgotten foon :
But thou, to fair diflindion born.
Thou,. Cowper, beamy in the morn
Of life, ftill brightening to the pitch of noon, 52
Scarce verging to the fteep decline.
Hence fummon'd while thy virtues radiant fhine.
Thou fmgled out tlie fofterling of fame.
Secure of praife, nor lefs fecur'd from blame, 56
Shalt be rememberM with a fond applaufe.
So- long as Britons own the fame indulgent laws.
E P O D E II,
United in one public weal.
Rejoicing in one freedom, all, 60
Cowper's hand apply'd the feal.
And level'd the partition-wall. •
The chofen feeds of great events
Are thinly fown, and flowly rife : 6^
And Time the harveft-fcythe prefents.
In feafon, to the good and wife ;
Hymning to the harp my ftory>
Fain would I record his glory. 68
STROPHE III.
Pouring forth, with heavy heart.
Truth unleaven'd, pure of art,
6 Like
ODES. (i-^
Like the hallow'd Bard of yore.
Who chaunted in authentic rhymes 72
The worthies of the good old times.
Ere living vice in verfe was varniili'd o'er.
And virtue died without a fong.
Support of friendlefs right, to powerful r/rong 76
A check, behold him in the judgment-feat 1
Tvvdce, there, approv'd, in righteoufnefs compleat :
In juft awards, how gracious ! tempering law
With mercy, and reproving v/ith a winning awe. 80
ANTISTROPHE III,
Hear him fpeaking, and you hear
Reafon tuneful to the ear !
Lips with thymy language fv\'eet,
DiiHlling on the hearer's mind 84
The balm of wifdom, fpeech refin'd,
Geleftial gifts !— -Oh, when the nobles meet.
When next, thou fea-furrounded land.
Thy nobles meet at Brunfv/ick's high command, 88
In vain they Iball the charmer's voice defire !
In vain thofe lips of eloquence require !
That mild conviction, which the foul affails
By foft alarms, and with a gentle force prevails ! 92
E P O D E III.
To fuch perfuafion, willing yields
The liberal mind, in freedom train'd.
Freedom, which, in crimfon'd fields,
'&y hardy toil our fathers gain'd, ^5
E 2 In
6-8 A. P H I L I P S ' S POEMS,
Inheritance of long defcent !
The facred pledge, fo dearly prlz'd
By that blefs'd fpirit we lament:
Grief-eafmg. lays, by grief devis'd, \oo
Plaintive numbers, gently flowing.
Sooth the forrows to him owing I
STROPHE IV,
Early on his growing heir^
Stamp what time may not impair> 104
As he grows, that coming years.
Or youthful pleafures, or the vain
Gigantic phantom of the brain
Ambition, breeding monftrous hopes and fears, xo8
Or worthier cares, to youth unknown.
Ennobling manhood, flower of life full-blown.
May never wear the bofom -image faint:
O, let him prove what words but weakly paint, iiz
The lively lovely femblance of his fire,
A model to his fon ! that ages may admire !
A N T I S T R O P H £ IV.
Every virtue, every grace.
Still renewing in the race, x 16
Once thy father's pleafing hope.
Thy widow'd mother's comfort now.
No fuller blifs does heaven allow.
While we behold yon wide-fpread azure cope, 12a
With burning ftars thick-lufter'd o'er.
Than to enjoy, and to deferve, a ftore
Of
ODES. 69
Of treafur'd fame, by blamelefi deeds acquir'd.
By all unenvied, and by all defired, 124
Free-gift of men, the tribute of good-will !
Rich in this patrimony fair, increafe it ftilL
E P O D E IV.
The fullnefs of content remains
Above the yet unfathom'd fKies, 128
Where, triumphant, glainefs reigns.
Where wifhes ceafe, and pleafures rife
Beyond all wilh; where bitter tears
For dying friends are never fhed; 132
Where, fighing, none defire pafs'd years :
Recall'd, or wifh the future fled.
Mournful meafures, O, relieve me !
Sweet remembrance ! ceafe to grieve me. 136
STROPHE V.
He the robe of juftice wore
Sully 'd not, as heretofore.
When the magiilrate was fought
With yearly gifts. Of what avail 140
Are guilty hoards ? for life is frail;
And we are judg'd where favour is not bought.
By him forewarn'd, thou frantic iile.
How did the thirft of gold thy fons beguile ! 144
Beneath the fpecious ruin thoufands groan'd.
By him, alas, forewarn'd, by him bemoan'd.
Where Ihall his like, on earth, be found ? oh, when
Shall I, once more, behold the molt belov'd of men !
F 3 ANT I-
70. A. P H 1 L I P S ' S POEMS.
ANTISTROPHE V.
Winning afpeft ! winning mind !
Soul and body aptly join'd !
Searching thought, engaging wit.
Enabled to inilrudl, or pleafe, I52
Uniting dignity with eafe.
By nature form'd for every purpofe iit.
Endearing excellence!-— O, why
Is fuch perfection born, and born to die ? 156
Or do fuch rare endowments ftill furvive.
As plants, remov'd to milder regions thrive.
In one eternal fpring ? and we bewail
The parting foul, new-born to life that cannot fail. 160
E P O D E V.
Where facred friendlhip, plighted love.
Parental joys, unmix'd with care.
Through perpetual time improve ?
Or do the deathlefs bleffed fhare 164
Sublimer raptures, unreveal'd,
Beyond our weak conception pure ?
But, while thofe glories lie conceaPd,
The righteous count the promife fure, 168
Trials to the laft enduring.
To the lail their hope fecuring.
To
O D E S. 71
TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE
WILLIAM PULTENEY, ESQUIRE.
May I, 1723.
L
"1 ICTHO, much diftmguiih'd, yet is blefs'd ?
^ ^ Who, digniiied above the relt.
Does, ftill, unenvied live f
Not to the man whofe wealth abounds, 4
Nor to the man whofe fame refounds.
Does heaven fuch favour give.
Nor to the noble -born, nor to the ftrong.
Nor to the gay, the beautiful, or young, S
II.
Whom then, fecure of happinefs.
Does every eye beholding blefs.
And every tongue commend ?
Him, Pulteney, who, poffeffing ftore, 12
Is not folicitous of more.
Who, to mankind a friend.
Nor envies, nor is envied by, the great.
Polite in courts, polite in his retreat: 16
IIL
Whofe unambitious, adive foul.
Attends the welfare of the whole.
When public florms arife.
And, in the calm, a thoufand ways , 20
Diverfifies his nights and days,
Still elegantly wife j
F 4. While
72 A. PHILIPS'S POEMS.
While books, each morn, the lightfome foul invite.
And friends, with feafon'd mirth, improve the night.
IV.
In him do men no blemiih fee ;
And fadions in his praife agree.
When moft they vex the flate :
Diftinguiih'd favourite of the fkies, 28
Belov'd he lives, lamented dies :
Yet, Ihall he not to fate
Submit entire; the refcuing Mufe fhall fave
His precious name, and win him from the grave. 32
V.
Too frail is brafs and polilh'd Hone;
Perpetual fame the Mufe alone
On merit can bellow :
Yet, muft the time-enduring fong, 36
The verfe unrival'd by the throng.
From Nature's bounty flow :
Th' ungifted tribe in metre pafs away.
Oblivion's fport, the poets of a day, 40
VI.
What laws fliall o'er the Ode prefide ?
In vain would art prefume to guide
The chariot-wheels of praife.
When Fancy, driving, ranges free, 44
Frefti flowers felefting, like the bee.
And regularly flirays.
While Nature does, difdaining aids of fkill.
The mind with ihought, the ears with numbers, fill. 48
VII. As
ODES. 73
VII.
As when the Theban hymns divine
Make proud Olympian vi6lors Ihine
In an eternal blaze.
The varying meafures, ever new, 52
Unbeaten tracks of fame purfue.
While through the glorious maze
The poet leads his heroes to renown.
And weaves in verfe a never-fading crown. 56
To Mifs Margaret Pultekey, Daughter of
Daniel Pulteney, Efq. in the Nurfery.
April 27, 1727.
Y\ IMPLY damfel, fweetly fmiling,
-'^-^ All careffing, none beguiling.
Bud of beauty, fairly blowing.
Every charm to Nature owing, a
This and that new thing admiring.
Much of this and that enquiring.
Knowledge by degrees attaining.
Day by day fome virtue gaining, g
Ten years hence, when I leave chiming,
Beardlefs poets, fondly rhyming,
(Fefcued now, perhaps, in fpelling,)
On thy riper beauties dwelling, 1 2
Shall accufe each killing feature
Of the cruel, charming, creature.
Whom I knew complying, willing,
'I'ender, and averfe from killing. 16
To
74 A. PHILIP S'S POEMS.
To Mifs Charlotte Pulteney,
in her Mother's Arms.
May I, 1724.
TIMELY blofibm, infant fair.
Fondling of a happy pair.
Every morn, and every night.
Their folicitous delight.
Sleeping, waking, Hill at eafe,
Pleafmg, without fkill to pleafe.
Little goffip, blithe and hale.
Tattling many a broken tale.
Singing many a tunelefs fong,
Lavifh of a heedlefs tongue.
Simple maiden, void of art.
Babbling out the very heart.
Yet abandon'd to thy will.
Yet imagining no ill.
Yet too innocent to blufh.
Like the linnet in the bufh. 16
To the mother-linnet's note
Moduling her flendcr throat.
Chirping forth thy petty joys.
Wanton in the change of toys, 20
Like the^linnet green, in May,
Flitting to each bloomy fpray.
Wearied then, and glad of reft.
Like the linnet iu the neft. 24
This
12
ODES. 75
This thy prefent happy lot.
This, in time, will be forgot :
Other pleafures;, other cares,
Ever-bufy time prepares ; 28
And thou (halt in thy daughter fee.
This pidlure, once, refembled thee.
TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE
ROBERT WALPOLE, ES QJJ I R E.
June 15, 1724.
VOTARY to publick zeal,
Minifter of England's weal.
Have you leifure for a fong.
Tripping lightly o'er the tongue, /^
Swift and fweet in every meafure.
Tell me, Walpole, have you leifure ?
Nothing lofty will I fmg,
Nothing of the favourite king, 8
Something, rather, fung with eafe,
Simply elegant to pleafe.
Fairy Virgin, Britilh Mufe,
Some unhear'd-of llory chufe : 12
Chufe the glory of the fwain.
Gifted with a magic ftrain.
Swaging grief of every kind.
Healing, with a verfe, the mind : 16
To him came a man of power,
To him, in a cheerlefs hour -,
When
76 A. P H I L I P S ' S POEMS.
When the fwain, by Druids taught.
Soon divin'd his irkfome thought, 20
Soon the maple harp he ftrung.
Soon, with filver-accent, fung.
" Steerer of a mighty realm,
" Pilot, waking o'er the helm, 24
" Bleffing of thy native foil,
** Weary of a thanklefs toil,
** Call repining thought behind,
*' Give thy trouble to the wind. 28
" Mortal, deftin'd to excel,
" Bear the blame of doing well,
" Like the worthies great of old,
" In the lill of fame enroll'd. 32
*' What, though titles thou decline ?
" Still the more thy virtues ihine.
** Envy, with her ferpent eye,
" Marks each praife that foars on high. 36
" To thy lot refign thy will :
" Every good is mix'd with ill.
" See, the white unblemifh'd rofe
*' On a thorny bramble blows : 40
" See, the torrent pouring rain
" Does the limpid fountain Ilain ;
" See, the giver of the day
*' Urgeth on, through clouds, his way ; 44.
** Nothing is, entirely, blefs'd;
" Envy does thy worth attefl.
*' Pleafing vifions, at command,
** Anfwer to my voice and hand ; • 48
" Quick,
ODES. 77
" Quick, the blifsful fcene prepare,
" Sooth the patriot's heavy care :
" Vifions, cheering to the light,
*' Give him earneft of delight. 5 2
" Wife difpofer of affairs,
" View the end of all thy cares 1
" Forward call thy ravilh'd eyes,
*' See the gladdening harveft rife : 56
" Lo, the people reap thy pain !
" Thine the labor, theirs the gain.
" Yonder turn, awhile, thy view,
*' Turn thee to yon fpreading yew, 60
" Once the gloomy tree of fate,
** Once the plighted virgin's hate :
*' Now, no longer, does it grow,
** Parent of the warring bow ; 64
*' See, beneath the guiltlefs fhade,
" Peafants (hape the plow and fpade,
** Refcued, ever, from the fear
" Of the whiftling fhaft and fpear. 63
" Lo, where plenty comes, with peace !
" Hear the breath of murmur ceafe :
" See, at la ft, unclouded days ;
" Hear, at laft, unenvied praife. 72
** Nothing fhall thy foul moleft ;
" Labour is the price of reft.
" Mortal, deftin'd to excel,
« Blefs the toil of doing well I" 76
S U P P L I-
78 A. PHILIPS'S POEMS.
SUPPLICATION FOR Miss CARTERET
IN THE SmALL-PoX.
Dublin, July 31, 1725.
"pOWER o'er every power fupreme>
■■- Thou the poet's hallow'd theme.
From thy mercy-feat on high.
Hear my numbers, hear my cry. 4
Breather of all vital breath.
Arbiter of life and death.
Oh, preferVe this innocence.
Yet unconfcious of offence, S
Yet in life and virtue growing.
Yet no debt to Nature owing.
Thou, who giv'ft angelic grace
To the blooming virgin face, 12
Let the fell difeafe not blight
What thou mad'ft for man's delight ;
O'er her features let it pafs
Like the breeze o'er fpringing grafs, 16
Gentle as refreihing fhowers
Sprinkled over opening flowers.
O, let years alone diminifh
Beauties thou waft pleas'd to finilh. 2©
To the pious parents give
That the darling fair may live :
Turn to bleffings all their care.
Save their fondnefs from defpair. 24
Mitigate
ODES. 79
Mitigate the lurking pains
Lodg'd within her tender veins ;
Soften every throb of anguilh.
Suffer not her ftrength to languifh ; 2S
Take her to thy careful keeping.
And prevent the mother's weeping.
TO MISS GEORGIAN A,
YOUNGEST DAUGHTER TO
LORD CARTERET.
August 10, 1725.
LITTLE charm of placid mien.
Miniature of beauty's queen.
Numbering years, a fcanty Nine,
Stealing hearts without delign, 4
Young inveigler, fond in wiles>
Prone to mirth, profufe in fmiles.
Yet a novice in difdain,
Pleafure giving without pain, 8
Still careffing. Hill carefs'd.
Thou, and all thy lovers blefs'd.
Never teiz'd, and never teizing,
O, for ever pleas 'd and pleafmg I 12
Hither, Britifh Mufe of mine.
Hither all the Grecian Nine,
With the lovely Graces three.
And your promis'd nurfeling fee : 16
Figure
8o A. PKILIPS»S POEMS.
Figure on her waxen mind
Images of life refinM ;
Make it, as a garden gay.
Every bud of thought difplay, 20
Till, improving year by year.
The whole culture Ihall appear.
Voice, and fpeech, and adlion, rifing.
All to human fenfe furprizing. 24
Is the filken web fo thin
As the texture of her Ikin ?
Can the lily and the rofe
Such unfully'd hue difclofe ? 28
Are the violets fo blue
As her veins expos'd to view ?
Do the ftars, in wintery fky.
Twinkle brighter than her eye ? 32
. Has the morning lark a throat
Sounding fvveeter than her note ?
Who e'er knew the like before thee ?
They who knew the Nymph that bare thee. 36
From thy paftime and thy toys.
From thy harmlefs cares and joys.
Give me now a moment's time :
When thou Ihalt attain thy prime, 40
And thy bofom feel defire.
Love the likenefs of thy fire.
One ordaln'd, through life, tO prove
Still thy glory, ftill thy love. 44
Like thy Sifter, and like thee.
Let thy nurtur'd daughters be :
Semblance
ODES. 8i
Semblance of the fair who bore thee.
Trace the pattern fet before thee, 48
Where the LiSy meets the main.
Has thy Sifter hear'd my llrain :
From the LiiFy to the Thames,
Minilrel echoes fmg their names, 52
Wafting to the willing ear
Many a cadence fvveet to hear.
Smooth as gently breathing gales
O'er the ocean and the vales, 56
While the veiTel calmly glides
O'er the level glaff;/ tides.
While the fummer flowers are fpringing.
And the new-fledg'd birds are fmging. 60
EPIGRAMS AND SHORT POEMS.
UPON THE TOASTS OF THE HANOVER. CLUB.
' I ''HE reigning fair on polilh'd cryflal Ihine,
-* Enrich our glaiTcG, and im|h*ove our wine.
The favourite names we to our lips apply.
Indulge our thoughts, and drink v/ith ecftacy. 4
While thefe, the chofen beauties of our ifle.
Propitious on the caufe of freedom fmile,
The rafli Pretender's hopes we may defpife.
And trull Britannia's fafety to their eyes. 8
ON A COMPANY OF BAD DANCERS
TO GOOD MUSIC*.
T T O W ill the motion v, ith the mufic fuits !
-*--*- So Orpheus fiddled, and (o danc'd the brutes.
* This Epigram Is claimed by Mr, Jeflreys, and i= printed
in his Works.
Vol. LVH. G EPI-
82 A. P H I L 1 P S ' S P O E M S>
EPIGRAM.
/^ EORGE came to the crown without linking a blow :
Ah, quoth the Pretender, would 1 could do fo !
In Answer to the Question, What is Thought ?
'"T^ H E hermit's folace in his cell.
The fire that warms the poet's brain.
The lover's heaven, or his hell.
The madman's fport, the wife man's pain.
TO MR. ADDISON ON C A T O,
'~T^ H E mind to virtue is by verfe fubdu'd.
And the true poet is a public good :
This Britain feels, while, by your lines infpir'd.
Her free-born fons to glorious thoughts are fir'd. 4
In Rome had you efpous'd the vanquiih'd caufe,
Inflam'd her fenate and upheld her laws.
Your manly fcenes had liberty rellor'd.
And' given the juft fuccefs to Cato's fvvord, 8
O'er Csefar's arms your genius had prevail'd.
And the Mufe triumph'd where the patriot fail'd,
ON WIT AND WISDOM.
A FRAGMENT.
T N fearch of wifdom far from wit I fly :
^ Wit is a harlot beauteous to the eye.
In whofe bewitching arms our early time
We walle, and vigour of our youthful prime : 4
But when refledlion comes with riper years.
And manhood with a thoughtful brow appears.
We call; the miftrefs oif to take a wife.
And, wed to wifdom, lead a happy life, 8
6 Txhe
EPITAPH. 83
The fonowing Epitaph on the Monument of
my Kinfwoman was written at tha Requeft of her
Hufband.
WITHIN the Burial- Vault near this Marble, lieth
the Body of Penelope, youngeli Daughter (and
Coheir with her Sifter Elizabeth) to Robert
Philips of Newton-Regis, in the County of War-
wick, Efquire. She died in her Six and Thirtieth
Year, on the 25th Day of January, 1726,
Let this Inscription,
(Appealing yet to teftimonies manifold)
Recall to every furviving witnefs^,
And, for enfample, record to poUerity, ^
Her endowments.
Whether owing to the Indulgency of nature.
Or to the afTiduous leffons of education.
Or to the filent admonitions of refleclicn. S
To her parents, hufband, children.
In no care, no duty, no afFedlion,
Was ihe wanting,
P.ecciving, deferving, winning, 12
From them refpedively.
Equal endearments.
Of countenance and cf difpofition.
Open, chearful, modeft- 16
G 2 Of
H
$4 A. P H 1 L I P S ' S POEMS.
Of behaviour, humble, courteous, eafy ;
Offpeech, affable, free, difcrcet;
In civilities, punftual, fincere, and elegant ;
Prone to offices of kindnefs and good will ;
To enmity a llranger ;
Forward, earnell, impatient.
To fuccour the diibefs'd.
To comfort the afflided ;
Solicitous for the poor.
And rich in llore of alms :
Whereby flie became
The delight, the love, the bleffing, of alL 2S
In her houlhold flourifhed
Chearfulnefs, due order, thrift, and plenty.
In the clofet retired.
In the temple public. 32
Morning and evening did fhe worfhip ;
By inftru£lion, by example.
Sedulous to nurture her children in godlinefs :
So prevalent her love to them, 36
Vifited with that fore difeafe.
Which too often kills or blites
The mother's fondell hopes.
That (regardlefs of felf-prefervatlon) 40
In pioufly watching over their lives
She, catching the infe6lion, lofl her ov/n.
Triumphing, through refignation.
Over ficknefs, pain, anguifh, agony, 44
And (encompalled with tears and lamentations)
Expiring in the fervour of prayer.
To
EPITAPH. 85
To the Memory, ever dear and precious, of his moft
aiFedcionate, moft beloved, and moft deferving Wife,
is this Monument raifed by H e n r y Vernon,
of Hilton, in the County of Stafford, Efquire ; to
him fhe bore five Sons and two Daughters, all fur-
viving, fave Elizabeth; who dying, in her fecond
Year, of the Small-Pox, fome few Days before,
refteth by her Mother*
THE FABLE OF THULE,
UNFINISHED.
T7- A R northward as the Dane extends his fway.
Wile re the fun glances but a Hoping ray.
Beneath the iharpeft rigour of the fkies,
Difdainful Thule's wintery ifland lies. 4
Unhappy maid ! thy tale, forgotten long.
Shall virgins learn from my inftruclive fong.
And every youth, who lingers in defpair.
By thy example warn the cruel fair. 8
In Cyprus, facred to the queen of love,
(Where Hands her temple, and her myrtle grove,)
Was Thuie born, uncertain how : 'tis faid
Once Venus won Adonis to her bed, 1 2
And pregnant grew, the birth to chance affign'd
In woods, and foiler'd by the feather'd kind.
With flowers fome flrew the helplefs orphan round,
Vv'ith downy mofs fome fpread the carpet ground, 16
G 3 Some
85 A. P H I L I P S ' S POEMS.
Some ripen'd fruits, fome fragrant honey, bring ;
And fome fetch water from the running fpring ;
While others v/arble from the boughs, to cheer
Their infant-charge, and tune her tender ear. 20
Soon as the fun forfakes the evening fkies.
And hid in fhades the gloomy foreil lies.
The nightingales their tuneful vigils keep.
And lull her, with their gentler ftrains, to fleep. 24
This the prevailing rumour : as Ihe grew.
No dubious tokens fpoke the rumour true.
In every forming feature might be feen
Some bright refemblance of the Cyprian queen : 28
Nor was it hard the hunter youth to trace.
In all her early pafiion of the chace :
And when, on fpringing flowers reclin'd, Ihe fung.
The birds upon the bending branches hung, 3 2
While, warbling, fhe exprefs'd their various drains.
And, at a diitance, charm'd the liftening fwains :
So fweet her voice refounding through the wood.
They thought the Nymph fome Syren from the flood.
Half human thus by lineage, half divine.
In forells did the lonely beauty Ihine,
Like woodland flowers, which paint the defert glades.
And v/aile their f*veets in unfrequented fliades. 40
No human face flie faw, and rarely feen
By human face : a folitary queen
She rul'd, and rang'd, her ihady empire round.
No horn the filent huntrefs bears ; no hound, 44
With noify cry, difturbs her folemn chace.
Swift, as the bounding flag, flie wings her pace ;
T H U L E. 87
And, bend whene'er fhe will her ebon bow,
A fpeedy death arrefts the flying foe. j^S
The bow the hunting goddefs fir ft fupply'd.
And ivory quiver crofs her fhoulders ty'd.
Th' imperious queen of heaven, with jealous eyes.
Beholds the blooming virgin from the fkies, 52
At once admires, and dreads her growing charms.
And fees the god already in her arms :
In vain, fhe finds, her bitter tongue reproves
His broken vows, and his clandeiHne loves : 56
Jove ftill continues frail : and all in vain
Does Thule in obfcureft Ihades remain.
While Maja's fon, the thunderer's winged fpy.
Informs him where the lurking beauties lie. 60
What fure expedient then Ihall Juno find.
To calm her fears, and eafe her boding mind ?
Delays to jealous minds a torment prove ;
And Thule ripens every day for love, 64
She mounts her car, and fhakes the filken reins j
The harnefs'd peacocks fpread their painted trains.
And fmooth their glofTy necks againft the fun :
The wheels along the level azure run. 68
Eaftward the goddefs guides her gaudy team.
And perfects, as flie rides, her forming fcheme.
The various orbs now pafs'd, adown the fteep
Of heaven the chariot whirls, and plunges deep 7:-
In fleecy clouds, which o'er the mid-land main
Hang pois'd in air, to blefs the ifles with rain :
And here the panting birds repofe a while :
Nor fo their queen ; fne gains the Cyprian ifle, 76
G 4 By
83 A. P H I L I P S ' S POEMS.
By fpeedy zephyrs borne in thickned air :
Unfeen fhe feeks, unfeen flie finds, the fair.
Now o'er the mountain tops the rifnig fun
Shot purple rays : now Thule had begun 80
Her morning chace, and printed in the dews
Her fleeting Heps. The goddefs now purfues.
Now over-takes her in the fall career.
And flings a javelin at the flying deer. 84
Amaz'd, the virgin huntrefs turns her eyes ;
When Juno, (now Diana in difguife,)
Let no vain terrors difcompofe thy mind ;
My fecond vifit, like my firfl, is kind. 88
Thy ivory quiver, and thy ebon bow.
Did not I give ? — Here fudden bluflies glow
On Thule's cheeks : her bufy eyes furvey
The drefs, the crefcent ; and her doubts give way. 92
I own thee, goddefs bright, the nymph replies,
Goddefs, I own thee, and thy favours prize ;
Goddefs of woods, and lawns, and level plains,
Frefh in my mind thine image itill remains. 96
Then Juno, beauteous ranger of the grove.
My darling care, fair objeft of my love.
Hither I come, urg'd by no trivial fears.
To guard thy bloom., and v/arn thy tender years, ico
T R A N
[ ^9 ]
TRANSLATIONS.
THE FIRST OLYMPIONIQUE OF PINDAR.
To HiERO of Syracuse, viclorious in the
Horse-Race.
argument.
THE Poet praifes Hiero for his juftice, his wifdom,
and his Ikill in mufic. He likewife celebrates the
horfe that won the race, and the place where the
Olympick Games were performed. From the place
(namely Peloponnefus) he takes an occafion of di-
greiling to the known fable of Tantalus and Pelops ;
whence, returning to Hiero, he fets forth the felicity
cf the Olympian Viclors. Then he concludes, by
praying to the gods to preferve the glory and dignity
of Kiero, admonilhing him to moderation of mind,
in his high llation; and, laftly, glories in hi^ ov/n
excellency in cornpofitions of this kind.
STROPHE I. Meafures i8,
T7 A C H element to water yields ;
■*--' And gold, like blazing fire by night,
Amidll: the ftores cf weakh that builds
I'he mind aloft, i; eminently bright ;
But
90 A. PHILIPS'S POEMS.
But if, my foul, with fond deiire ^
To fing of games thou doll afpire.
As thou by day canft not defcry.
Through all the liquid walle of Iky,
One burniih'd ftar, that like the fun does glow.
And cherifh every thing below, i o
So, my fweet foul, no toil divine.
In fong, does like th' Olympian fliine:
Hence do the mighty poets raife
A hymn, of every tongue the praife.
The fon of Saturn to refound, 15
When far, from every land, they come
To vifit Hiero's regal dome.
Where peace, where plenty, is for ever found:
ANTISTROPHE I. Meafures 18.
Lord of Sicilians fleecy plains.
He governs, righteous in his power, 20
And, all excelling while he reigns.
From every lovely virtue crops the flower ;
In mufic, bloffom of delight.
Divinely Ikill'd, he cheers the night.
As we are wont, v/hen friends defign 2C.
To feaft and wanton o'er their wine ;
But from the wall the Dorian harp take down.
If Pifa, city of renown.
And if the fleet viftorious Heed,
The boaft of his unrivai'd breed, 30
Heart-pleafmg raptures did infpire.
And warm thy breait with facred iire.
When
TRANSLATIONS. 91
When late, on Alpheus' crouded fhore,
Fcrth-fpringing quick, each nerve he ilrain'd.
The warning of the fpur difdain'd, 35
And Ivvift to victory his mailer bore.
^ E P O D E I. Meafares 16.
The lov'd Syracufian, the prince of the courfe.
The king, who delights in the fpeed of the horfe :
Great his glory, great his fame.
Throughout the land where Lydian Pelops cams 40
To plant his men, a chofen race,
A land the ocean does embrace,
Pelops, whom Neptune, ruler of the main.
Was known to love, when into life again.
From the reviving cauldron warm, 45
Clotho produc'd him whole, his fnoulder-blade.
And its firm brawn, of fhining ivory made ;
But truth, unvarniih'd, oft neglected lies.
When fabled tales, invented to furprize.
In miracles mighty, have power to charm, 50
Where fiftions, happily combui'd.
Deceive and captivate the mind:
STROPHE II. Meafures 18.
Thus Poefy, harmonious fpell.
The fource of pleafures ever new.
With dignity does wonders tell; 5-
And we, amaz'd, believe each wonder true.
Day, after day, brings truth to light,
Ufiveird, and manifeil to fight:
But>
92 A. P H I L I P S ' S POEMS.
Rut, of the blefs'd, thofelips which name
Foul deeds aloud, fhall fufFer blame. 60
7'hee, fon of Tantalus, my faithful fong
Shall vindicate from every wrong.
The glories of thy houfe reftore.
And baffle falfhoods told before :
Now, in his turn, thy fire prepar'd 65
\ banquet; when the gods appeared
At Sipylus, his fweet abode.
To grace the due proportion'd feaft :
There, firft, the trident-bearing gueft
Beheld thy lovely form; and now, he glow'd; 70
A N T I S T R O P H E II. Meafures 18.
And now, his foul fubdued by love.
Thee in his golden car he bore
Swift to the lofty tov/ers of Jove,
Whofe name the nations all around adore :
Thus Ganymede was caught on high, 75
To ferve the power who rules the fky.
When thou no longer didft appear.
And thofe, who fought a pledge fo dear.
Without thee to thy widowed mother came.
Some envious neighbour, to defame So
Thy father's feaic, a rumour fpread.
The rumour through the country fled.
That ihou, to heigiiten the repaft.
Waft into feething water call.
Fierce bubbling o'er the raging fire, 85
Thy limbs without compafiion carv'd.
Thy
TRANSLATIONS. g^
I Thy fodden flefh in melTes ferv'd.
To gorge the gods, and a voracious fire :
E P O D E II. Mzzfmes i6.
Bat, in thought ever pure, ihall I deem it amifs.
Vile gluttons to call the partakers of blifs : 90
Let me then refrain, and dread:
A curfe hangs over the blafphemer's head.
If they, who fupervife and ward
The heavens, did ever Ihew regard
To mortal man this Tantalus might boafl, 95
Of mortal men that he was honoured mofl: :
But he not able to digeft
The glut, the furfeit, of immortal Joys,
One heinous forfeit all his blifs defiroys :
For over him the godhead hung, in air, 100
A ponderous ftone, a dreadful poife of care !
From his head to remove it, with terror opprefb'd.
In vain he tries, and feeks in vain
One chearful moment to regain:
STROPHE III. Meafarcs 18.
A life of woe, beyond relief, 105
His portion now ; ordain'd before
To torments of a three-fold grief.
This fourth was added to compleat his (lore.
Since, high prefuming in his foul.
He nedar and ambrofia ftole, 110
To give to men; by wliich he knev/
That, talVmg, he immortal grew:
But
94 A. P H I L I P S * S POEMS.
But be not man cleceiv'd : the gods reveal
What moft we labour to conceal :
For this the powers, who deathlefs reign, 1 1 5
To earth fent down his fon again.
To dwell with men, a Ihort-liv'd race,
Whofe fudden fate come on apace.
His flowery age in all its pride.
When, o'er his chin, a blackening fliada 120
Of down was caf!:, a vow he made.
Deep in his foul, to win the profer'd bride.
ANTISTROPHE III. Meafures 18.
Hippodamia, boafted name.
From her great fire the Pifan proud.
Alone, by night, the lover came 1:15
Befide the hoary fea, and call'd aloud
On him who fways the triple fpear.
And fills with din the deafen'd ear;
When, at his feet, the god arofe :
Then Pelops, eager to difclofe 1 30
His mighty care, " O Neptune, if tliy mind
" In love did ever pleafure find,
" Let not Oenomaiis prevail,
** And let this brazen javelin fail:
" Oh! bear me hence, on wheels of fpeed, ^35
" To Elis, to the glorious meed :
*' To viftory oh ! whirl me, flrait :
*' Since, after ten, and other three,
" Bold fuiters flain, yet ftill we fee,
" From year to year, the promis'd nuptials wait 140
E P O D E
TRANSLATIONS. 95
E P O D E III. Meafures 16.
" Of his daughter. No perilous toil can excite
*' The dafiard in heart, who defpairs of his might,
** Since we all are born to die,
" Who, overcaft, would in oblivion lie,
*' In unreputed age decay, 145
" And meanly fquander life away,
" Cut off from every praife ? Then let me dare
" This conflift, in the dufty lifts, to fhare ;
'* And profper thou my glowing wheels."
Thus Pelops fpoke; nor was his fervent prayer 150
Pour'd forth in fruitlefs words, to waft in air :
The deity his whole ambition grants ;
Nor fhining car, nor courfers, now he wants :
In the golden bright chariot new vigour he feels.
Exulting in the horfes' feet, 155
Unwearied ever, ever fleet :
STROPHE IV. Meafures 18.
Cenomaiis, he triumphs o'er
Thy prowefs, and, to fiiare his bed.
Claims the bright maid ; who to him bore
Six princely fons, to manly virtues bred. 160
Now, folemniz'd with fteaming blood.
And pious rites, near Alpheus' flood
Intomb'd, he fleeps, v/here th' altar ftands.
That draws the vows of diftant lands :
And round his tomb the circling racers flrive : 165
And round the v/heelirg chariots drive.
In
g6 A. PHILIPS 'S POEMS.
In thy fam'J courfes, Pelops, rife
Th' OlympLin glories to trx ikies.
And fhine afar: there we behold
The flretch of manhood, flrenuous, bold, 17c
In fore fatigues, and there the ftrife
Of winged feet. Thrice happy he.
Who overcomes ! for he fliall fee
Unclouded days, and tafte the fweets of life.
A N T I S T R O P H E IV. Meafures 18.
Thy boon, O vidlory ! thy prize. 175
The good that, in a day obtaln'd.
From day to day frelh joy fupplies.
Is the fupreme of blifs to man ordain'd :
But let me now the rtder raife
And crown him with ^olian lays, 1 80
The viflor's due: and I confide.
Though every welcome guell were try'd.
Not one, in all the concourfe, would be found
For faireft knowledge more renown'd.
Nor yet a mafter more to twine, 1 85
In lafting hymns, each wreathing line.
The guardian god, who watchful guides
Thy fortunes, Hiero, prefides
O'er all thy cares with anxious power :
And foon, if he does not deny 190
His needful aid, my hopes run high
To fmg more pleafing in the joyful hour,
E? ODE
TRANSLATIONS. 97
E P O D E IV. Meafures 16.
Oa thy chariot, triumphant when thou Ihalt appear.
And fly o'er the courfe with a rapid career.
Tracing paths of language fair, i^^
As I to Cronion's funny mount repair.
Even now the Mufe prepares to raife.
Her growth, the llrongeil dart of praife.
For me to wield. Appro v'd in other things.
Do others rife, confpicuous, only kings, 200
High mounting on the fummit fix :
There bound thy view, wide-fpread, nor vainly try
Farther to ftretch the profpe6l of thine eye :
Be, then, thy glorious lot to tread fublime.
With Heady fteps, the meafur'd trad of time ; 205
Be mine, with the prize-bearing worthies to mbc.
In Greece, throughout the learned throng,
Proclaim'd unrival'd in my fong.
Vol. LVii. H T n r.
93 A. PHILIPS'S POEMS.
THE SECOND O L Y M P I O N I Q^U E.
To Theron ofAcRiGENTUM, vidonous
ill the C H A R I O T - R A C E.
ARGUMENT.
He praifes Theron king of Agrigentum, on account of
the viftory obtained in the Olympic Games, with a
chariot and four horfes ; likewifc for his juflice, his
hofpitality, his fortitude, and the illuftrioufnefs of his
anceftors ; whofe adventures are occafionally men-
tioned : then he interweaves digreffions to S^mele,
Ino, Peleus, Achilles, and others, and defcribes the
future Hate of the righteous and of the wicked.
Laftly, he concludes with extolling his own Ikill in
panegyrick, and the benevolence and liberality of
Theron.
STROPHE I. Meafures i6.
QOVEREIGN hymns, whofe numbers fway
^ The founding harp, what god, what hero, fay.
What man, fliall we refound ?
Is not Pifa Jove's delight ?
And did not Hercules, with conquell crown'd 5
To him ordain
Th' Olympiad for an army flain.
Thank-offering of the war ?
And mxuft we not, in Theron's right.
Exert our voice, and Avell our fong ? lo
Theron, whofe victorious car
Four courfers whirl, fleeting along,
6 "* To
TRANSLATIONS. 99
To ftranger-guefts indulgent hoil:.
Of Agrigentum the fupport and boaft.
Cities born to rule and grace, 15
Fair bloiTom of his ancient race,
ANTISTROPHE I. Meafures 16.
Worthies fore perplex'd in thought.
Till, wandering far, they found, what long they fought,
A facred feat, faft by
Where the ftream does rapid run, 20
And reign'd, of Sicily the guardian eye.
When happy days.
And wealth, and favour, flow'd, and praife.
That in-born worth inflames.
Saturnian Jove, O ! Rhea's fon, 25
Who o'er Olympus d'oll prefide.
And the pitch of lofty games.
And Alpheus, of rivers the pride.
Rejoicing in my fongs, do thou
Incline thine ear, propitious to my vow, 30
BlelTmg, with a bounteous hand.
The rich hereditary land.
E P O D E I. Meaf.ires 10.
Through their late lineage down. No power can adlions
part.
Whether deeds of right or wrong.
As things not done recall, 35
Not even Time, the father, who produces aU ;
Yet can Oblivion, waiting long,
H 2 Gather-
100
A. PHTLIPS'S POEMS.
Gathering ftrength
Through the length
Of profpcrous times, forbid thofe deeds to laft : 40
Such force has fvvcet-healing joy
Ihc feftering fmart of evils to dellroy,
S T Pv O P H E II. Meafures 16.
When felicity is fent
Down bv the will fupreme with full content :
Thy daughters, Cadmus, they 45
Greatly wretched here below,
Blefs'd evermore, this mighty truth difplay.
No weight of grief.
But, whelm'd in pleafures, find relief.
Sunk in the fweet abyfs. 50
Thou, Semelc, v.'ivh hair a-flow.
Thou by thunder doom'd to die.
Mingling with the gods in blifs.
Art happy, for ever on high :
Thee Pallas does for ever love, 55
Thee chiefly Jupiter, who rules above;
Thee thy fon holds ever dear.
Thy fon with the ivy-wreath'd fpear.
ANTISTROPHE II. Meafures 16.
Beauteous Ino, we are told.
With the fea-daughters dwells of Nereus old, 60
And has, by lot, obtain'd
Lafting life, beneath the deep,
A life within no bounds of time reflrain'd.
The hour of death.
The day when we refign our breath, 65
That
TRANSLATIONS.
lOI
That offspring of the fun.
Which bids us from our labours fleep.
In vain do- mortals fesk to know.
Or who deftin'd is to run
A life unintangled with woe ; 70
For none are able to difclofe
The feafons of th' uncertain ebbs and flows
Now of pleafures, now of pains.
Which hidden fate to men ordains :
E P O D E II. Meafures 10.
Tiius Providence, that to thy anceftry, long-fam'd, 75
Portions out a pleafmg ihare
Of heaven-fprung happinefs.
Does, ceafmg in another turn of time to blefs,
Diilribute fome reverfe of care.
As from years 80
Pail appears.
Since the predellin'd fon, at Pytho nam'd.
Did Laius, blindly meeting kill.
And the oracle, of old pronounc'd, fulnl :
STROPHE III. Meafures 16,
Fell Erinnys, quick to view 8 -
The deed, his war-like fons in battle flew.
Each by the other's rage :
But to Polynices flain
Surviv'd Therfander, glory of his age.
For feats of war, oa
And youthful contefts, honour'd far,
The fcion, kept alive
To raife th' Adraftian houfe again :
102 A. PHILIPS ^S POEMS,
From whence ^nefidamus' heir
Does his fpreading root derive, 95
To branch out a progeny fair ;
Who, fpringing foremoft in the chace
Of fame, demands v*'e fhould his triumph grace.
Tuning lyres to vocal lays.
Sweet union of melodious praife ; ico
ANTISTROPHE III. Meafure 16.
For not only has he borne
Th' Olympian prize, but, with his brother, worn
The garland of renown.
At Pytho and at Ifthmus ; where,
Viftorious both, they fnar'd th' allotted crown, IC5
Joint-honour, won
In twelve impetuous courfes, run
With four unwearied fteeds.
To vanquifh in the ftrife fevere
Does all anxiety deftroy : lie
And to this, if wealth fucceeds
With virtues enamel'd, the joy
Luxuriant grows j fuch affluence
Does glorious opportunities difpenfe^
Giving depth of thought to find 1 1 5
Purfuits which pleafe a noble mind.
E P O D E III. Meafures 10.
Refulgent liar I to man the pureit beam of light !
The pofTeflbr of this llore.
Far-future things difcerning, knows
Obdurate wretches, once deceas'd, to immediate woes
Confign'd, too late their pains deplore ; 121
For
TRANSLATIONS. 103
For below
Ere they go,
Sits one in judgment, who pronounces right
On crimes in this wide realm of Jove ; 125
Whofe dire decree no power can e'er remove :
STROPHE IV. Meafures 16.
But the good, alike by night.
Alike by day, the fun's unclouded light
Beholding, ever blefs'd.
Live an unlaborious life, 1 30
Nor anxious interrupt the hallow'd reft
With fpade and plow.
The earth to vex, or vvith the prow
The briny fea, to eat
The bread of care in endlefs ftrife. 135
The dread divinities among
The few unaccuftomed to wrong.
Who never broke the vow they fvvore,
A tearlefs age enjoy for ever-more ;
While the wicked hence depart 140
To torments wliich appall the heart :
A N T I S T R O P H E IV. Meafures 16.
But the fouls who greatly dare.
Thrice try'd in either ftate, to perfevere
From all injuftice pure.
Journeying onward in the way 145
Of Jupiter, in virtue ftill fecure.
Along his road
Arrive at Saturn's rais'd abode ;
H 4 Where
104 A. PHILIPS'S POEMS.
Where foft fea-breazes breathe
Round the ifiand of the blefs'd; where gay 150
The trees with golden blofToms glow;
Where, their brows and arms to wreathe.
Bright garlands on every fide below ;
For, fpringing thick in every field.
The earth does golden flowers fpontaneous yield ;
And, in every limpid ftream, 156
The budding gold is feen to gleam :
E P O D E IV. Meafures 10
Fair heritage ! by righteous Rhadamanth's award ;
Who, cocqaal, takes his feat
With Saturn, fire divine, 160
Thy confort, P.hea, v/ho above the reft doth fliine.
High thron'd, thou matron -goddefs great i
Thefe among
(Blifsful throng !)
Does Peleus and does Cridmus find regard ; 165
And, through his mother's winning prayer
To Jove, Achilles dwells immortal there :
STROPHE V. Meafures 16.
He v,dio He(^or did deftroy.
The pillar firm, the whole fupport, of Troy,
And Cycnus gave to die, I jo
And Aurora's ^thicp fon.
My arm beneath yet many darts have I,
All fwift of flight.
Within my quiver, founding right
To every ficiiful ear: 1-74
But, of the multitude, not one
Difcerns
translations; 105
Difcems the myftery unexplain'd.
He tranfcendent doss appear
In knowledge, from Nature who gain'd
His (lore : but the dull-letter'd croud, i8o
In cenfure vehement, in nonfenfe loud.
Clamour idly, wanting Ikill,
Like crows, in vain, provoking Hill
ANTISTROPHE V. Meaf^jres 16.
The celelllal bird of Jove :
But, to the mark addrefs thy bow, nor rove, 18-
My foul : and whom do I
Single out with fond denre.
At him to let illuilrious arrows fly i
My fix'd intent.
My aim, on Agrigentum bent, iro
A folemn oath I plight,
Sincere as lioneil minds require.
That through an hundred circling years.
With recorded worthies bright.
No rivaling city appears lo^
To boail: a man more frank to impart
Kind offices to friends v/ith open heart.
Or, with hand amidil his fiore.
Delighting to diftribute more
EPODE V. Meafares 10.
Than Theron : yet foul calumny, injurious blame.
Did the men of rancour raife 200
Againfi his fair renown,
Defamers who by evil actions frrove to drown
His good; and to conceal his praife.
Can
io6 A. P H I L I P S ' S POEMS.
Can the fand, 205
On the ftrand.
Be number'd o'er ? Then, true to Theron's fame.
His favours fhovvering down delight
On thoufands who is able to recite ?
THE FIRST ODE OF ANACREON.
ON HIS LUTE.
np H E line of Atreus will I fing ;
^ To Cadmus will I tune the firing :
But, as from fcring to firing I move.
My lute will only found of Love. a
The chords I change through every fcrew.
And model the whole lute anew.
Once more, in fong, my voice I raifc.
And, Hercules, thy toils I praife : 5
My lute does flill my voice deny.
And in the tones of love reply.
Ye heroes then, at once farewel :
Loves only echo from my fhell. 1 2
THE SECOND ODE.
ON WOMEN.
XT ATURE the bull with horns fupplies.
The horfe with hoofs fhe fortifies.
The fleeting foot on hares beftows.
On lions teeth, two dreadful rows ! 4
Grants
TRANSLATIONS. 107
Grants fifh to fwim, and birds to fly.
And on their fkill bids men rely.
Women alone defcncelefs live.
To women what does Nature give ? 8
Beauty (he gives inftead of darts,
Beauty, inftead of ihields, imparts ;
Nor can the {"^^ord, nor fire, oppofe
The fair, vidlorious where ihe goes. 12
THE THIRD ODE.
ON LOVE.
f~\ N E midnight when the bear did Hand
^■^ A-level with Bootes' hand.
And, with their labour fore opprefs'd.
The race of men were laid to reft, ^
Then to my doors, at unawares.
Came Love, and tried to force the bars.
Who thus affails my doors, I cry'd ?
Who breaks my flumbers ? Love reply'd, 8
Open : a child alone is here !
A little child ! — you need not fear :
Here through the moonlefs night I ftray.
And, drench'd in rain, have loft my way. iz
Then mov'd to pity by his plight.
Too much in hafte my lamp I light.
And open : when a child I fee,
A little child, he feem'd to me ; 16
Who bore a quiver, and a bow ;
And wings did to his fhoulders grow.
Within
io8 A. P H I L I P S ' S POEMS.
Within the earth I bid him ftand.
Then chafe and cherifh either hand 20
Between my palms, and wring, with care.
The trickling water from his hair.
Now come, faid he, no longer chill.
We'll bend this bow, and try our fkill, 24
And prove the firing, how far its power
Remains unflacken'd by the fhower.
He bends his bow, and culls his quiver.
And pierces, like a breeze, my liver : 28
Then leaping, laughing, as he fied.
Rejoice v.'ith me, my hoft, he faid :
My bow is found in every part.
And you fhall rue it at your heart. 32
AN HYMN TO V E N U S,
From the Greek of S a p p h 0.
I.
f-\ VENUS, beauty of the fkies,
^^ To whom a thoufand temples rife,
Gayly falfe in gentle fmiles.
Full of love-perplexing wiles, 4
O, goddefs ! from my heart remove
The walling cares and pains of love.
IT.
If ever thou hail kindly heard
A fong in foft diilrefs prefer'd, 8
Propitious to my tuneful vow,
O, gentle goddefs ! hear me now.
Defccnd,
TRANSLATIONS. 109
Defcend, thou bright, immortal gueft.
In all thy radiant charms confefs'd. 12
III.
Thou once didil: leave almighty Jove,
And all the golden roofs above :
The car thy wanton fparrows drew ;
Hovering in air they lightly flew ; 1 6
As to my bower they v/ing'd their way,
I law their quivering pinions play.
IV.
The birds difmifsM (while you remain)
Bore back their empty car again : 20
Then you, with looks divinely mild.
In every heavenly feature fmil'd.
And a&'d, what new complaints I made.
And why I call'd you to my aid ? 24
V.
What frenzy in my bofom rag'd.
And by what care to be affuag'd ?
What gentle youth I would allure.
Whom in my artful toils fecure ? 28
Who does thy tender heart fubdue.
Tell me, my Sappho, tell me v/ho ?
VI.
Though now he fhuns thy longing arms.
He foon fhall court thy flighted charms ; 3 3
Though now thy offerings he defpife.
He foon to thee fhall facrifice ;
Though now he freeze, he foon fnall bum.
And be thy vidim in his turn. 36
VII. Celef-
jiio A. PHILIPS^S POEMS.
VII. i
Celeftial vifitant, once more
Thy needful prefence I implore I *
In pity come and eafe my grief.
Bring my diftemper'd foul relief: 40
Favour thy fuppliant's hidden fires.
And give me all my heart defires.
A FRAGMENT OF SAPPHO. |
I.
O L E S S ' D as the immortal gods is he.
The youth who fondly fits by thee.
And hears and fees thee all the while i
Softly fpeak, and fweetly fmile. 4
II.
'Tvvas this depriv'd my foul of reft.
And rais'd fach tumults in my breaft;
For while I gaz'd, in tranfport tofs'd.
My breath was gone, my voice was loH.^ 8
III.
My bofom glow'd ; the fubtle flame
Ran quickly through all my vital frame ;
O'er my dim eyes a darknefs hung.
My ears with hollow murmurs rung.
IV.
In de\vy damps my limbs were chilPd,
My blood with gentle horrors thrilPd ;
My feeble pulfe forgot to play,
I fainted, funk, and dy'd away. i^j
TOl
L III J
TO MR. AMBROSE PHILIPS,
ON HIS DISTREST MOTHER.
ANONYMOUS; FROM STEELE'S COLLECTION.
L
O N G have the writers of this warlike age
With human facrifices drench'd the ftage ;
That fcarce one Hero dares demand applaufe.
Till, weltering in his blood, the ground he gnaws : 4
As if, like fwans, they only could delight
V/ith dying ftrains, and, while they pleafe, affright.
Our Philips, though 'twere to oblige the fair.
Dares not deftroy, where Horace bids him fpare : 8
His decent fcene like that of Greece appears ;
No deaths our eyes offend, no fights our ears.
While he from nature copies every part.
He forms the judgment, and affedls the heart. 12
Oft' as Andromache renews her woe.
The mothers fadden, and their eyes o'erflow.
Hermione, with love and rage poffeft.
Now fooths, nov/ animates, each maiden breafl. 16
P)Trhus, triumphant o'er the Trojan walls.
Is greatly perjur'd, and as greatly falls.
Love, and Defpair, and Furies are combin'd
In poor Orelles, to diftracl his mind. 20
From firll to lall, alternate paffions reign ;
And v/e refill the Poet's will in vain.
ODES.
[ *'i3 3
CONTENTS
O F
A. PHILIPPS'S POEMS.
PASTORAL POEMS.
FIRST PASTORAL.
T OBBIN Page 7
SECOND.
Thenot, Colinet. - - • n
THIRD.
Albino. - - » 16
FOURTH.
Myco, ArgoL - - zi
FIFTH.
Cuddy. - - • • 28
SIXTH.
Geron, Hobbinol, Lanquet, • - 32.
The Stray Nymph. . - - 38
The Happy Swain,. - - 39
■YoL.LyiL *H Erii-
»ii4 CONTENTS.
EPISTLES.
To a Friend, who defired me to write on the Death
of King William. - - 41
From Holland to a Friend in England, in the
Year 1703. ... 43
To the Earl of Dorfet. - - 45
To the Right Honourable Charles Lord Halifax,
one of the Lords Juftices appointed by his Ma.-
jeily. - - - 48
To the Honourable James Craggs, Efq. Secretary
at V/ar, at Hampton Court. - 50
To Lord Carteret, departing from Dublin. - 56
ODES.
Song. - - - - 58
Song. - - - 59
To Signora Cuzzoni. - - ibid.
To the Memory of the late Earl of Halifax. 60
To the Honourable Mifs Carteret. - - 61
On the Death of the Right Honourable William Earl
Cowper. - - - 64
To the Right Honourable William Pulteney, Efq. 71
To Mifs Margaret Pulteney, Daughter of Daniel
Pulteney, Efq. in the Nurfery. - - 73
To Mifs Charlotte Pulteney ; in her Mother's
Arms. - _ - - - 74
To the Right Honourable Robert Walpole, Efq. 75
Supplication to Mifs Carteret, in the Small-Pox. 78
To Mifs Georgina, youngeil Daughter to Lord
Carteret. - - - 79-
E P I-
CONTENTS. *ii5
EPIGRAMS AND SHORT POEMS.
On a Company of bad Dancers to good Mufic. 8i
Epigram. - - - 8r
In anfwer to the Quellion, What is Thought ? ibid.
To Mr. Addifon, on Cato. - - ibid..
On Wit and Wifdom ; a Fragment. - ibid.
Epitaph written on the Monument of my Kinf-
woman, at the Requell of her Hufoand. - 83
The Fable of Thule, (unfiniih'd.) - 85
TRANSLATIONS.
The Firft Olympionique of Pindar. To Hiero of
Syracufe, vidorious in the Horfe-Race. 89
The Second Olympionique. To Theron of Agrigen-
tum, vidorious in the Chariot-Race. 98
The Firft Ode of Anacreon. On his Lute. ig6
The Second ditto. On Women. - - ibid.
The Third ditto. On Love. - - - 107
An Hymn to Venus, from the Greek of Sappho. 108
A Fragment of Sappho. - - no
To Mr. Ambrofe Philips, on his Diftreft Mother, iix
ODES
O F
PINDAR,
WITH SEVERAL OTHER
PIECES IN VERSE,
Translated from the GREEK.
TO WHICH ARE ADDED
OllIGINAL POEMS ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS,
By GILBERT WEST, Efq. L L. D.
" Res antiquse laudis Sc artis
" Ingredior, fandlos aufus recludere fontes."
ViRG. Georg. ii.
Vol. LVIE
T O
The Right Hoxouraele
WILLIAM PITT, EscL,
Paymalter-General of his Majefty's Forces,
One of his Majefly's moil: Honourable Privy Council;
And to the Honourable
Sir GEORGE LYTTELTON, Bart.
One of the Lords CommifEoners of the Treafury ;
THESE POEMS
Are infcribed b}- the Author;
\\Tio is defirous that the Friendihip,
With which they have for many Years honoured him.
And the fmcere Afteciion and high Eileem,
Which he hath conceived for them.
From a long and intimate Knowledge
of their Worth and Virtue,
May be knowTi
Wherever the Publication of the enfuing Pieces
Shall make known the Name of
GILBERT WEST.
I2
[17]
PREFACE.
f~\ F all the great Writers of Antiquity, no one was
ever more honoured and admired while living, as
few have obtained a larger and fairer portion of fame
after death, than Pindar. Paufanias tells us, that the
chara(fler of Poet was really and truly confecrated in his
perfon, by the God of Poets himfslf *, who was pleafed
by an exprefs oracle to order the inhabitants of Delphi
to fet apart for Pindar one half of the firll-fruit offerings
brought by the religious to his ihrine ; and to allow
him a place in his temple ; where in an iron chair he
was ufed to fit and fing his hymns, in honour of that
God. This chair was remaining in the time of f Pau-
fanias (feveral hundred years after) to whom it was
Ihewn as a relick not unworthy the fandtity and mag-
nificence of that holy place. Pan t likewife, another
Mufical Divinity, is reported to have fkipped and
jumped for joy, while the Nymphs v/ere dancing in
honour of the birth of this Prince of Lyrick Poetry ;
and to have been afterwards (o much delighted with
liis compofitions, as to have fung his Odes in the hear-
ing even of the Poet himfelf §. Unhappily for us,
and indeed for Pindar, thofe parts of his works, which
procured him thefe extraordinary teflimonies from the
Gods (or from Mortals rather, who by the invention
* Pauf. in Boeot. f Pauf. In Phoc.
t Phlloflratus in Icon. § Plut. in Numa.
1 -, of
iiS PREFACE.
of thcfe fables meant only to expreis the high opinion
they entertained of this great Poet) are all loft : I
mean his Hymns to the feveral Deities of the Heathen
World. And even of thofe writings, to which his
lefs extravagant, but more ferious and more lafting
glory is owing, only the leaft, and, according to fome
people, the vvorll: part is now remaining. Thefe are
his Odes infcribed to the Conquerors in the Four facred
Games of Greece. By thefe Odes therefore are we
now left to judge of the merit of Pindar, as they are
the only living evidences of his charader.
Among the moderns * thofe men of learning of the
trueft taile and judgment, who have read and confider-
ed the writings, of this Author in their original
language, have all agreed to confirm the great cliaradler
given of him by the Ancients. And to fuch who are
ftill able to examine Pindar himfelf, I ihall leave him
to ftand or fall by his ov/n merit; only befpeaking their
candour in my own behalf, if they fnouid think it
worth their while to perufe the follovv'ing tranilations
of fome of his Odes : which I here offer chiefly to the
Englifh reader, to whom alone I defire to addrefs a few
confiderations, in order to prepare him to form a right-
judgment, and indeed to have any relifh of the Com-
pofitions of this great Lyrick Poet, who notwithltand-
* See Abbe Fraguler's Chara(51er of Pindar, printed In the
3d Vol. of Memoire de 1' Academie Royale, &c. and Kennet's
Life of Pindar, in the Lives of the Gre^k Poets.
ing
PREFACE.
119
ing muft needs appear before him under great difad-
vantages.
To begin with removing fome prejudices againft this
Author, that have ariien from certain writings known
by the name of Pindarick Odes ; I mufl infill: that very-
few, which I remember to have read under that title,
not excepting even thofe written by the admired Mr.
Cowley, whofe wit and fire firll: brought them into re-
putation, have the leail refemblance to the manner of
the Author, whom they pretend to imitate, and from
whom they derive their Name ; or, if any, it is fuch
a refemblance only as is expreffed by the Italian word
caricatura, a monllrous and diftorted likenefs. This
obfervation has been already made by Mr. Congreve in
his Preface * to two admirable Odes, written profef-
fedly in imitation of Pindar ; and 1 may add, fo much
in his true manner and fpirit, that he ought by all
means to be excepted out of the number of thofe who
have brought this author into difcredit by pretending
to referable him.
Neither has Mr. Cowley, though he drew from tlie
life, given a much truer pi^ure of Pindar in the
Tranllations he made of two of his Odes. I fay not
this to detraft from Mr. Cowley, whofe genius, per-
haps, Vvfas not inferior to that of Pindar himfelf, or
either of thofe other two great Poets, Horace and
Virgil, whofe names have been beftowed upon him,
but chiefly to apologize for my having ventured to
tranflate the fame Odes ; and to prepare the I^eader for
* Freferved in the prefent coiledllon.
I 4 the
120
PREFACE.
the wide difference he will fmd betv/een many parts of
his Tranflations and 7?ii?ie,
Mr. Cowley and his Imitators (for all the Pindarick
Writers fmce his time have only mimicked him, while
they fancied they were imitating Pindar) have fallen
themfelves, and by their examples have led the world,
into two miHakes with regard to the charader of Pin-
dar : both which are pointed out by Mr. Congreve in
the Preface above-mentioned, and in the following,
words :
*"' The charader of thefe late Pindaricks is a bupdle
*' of rambling incoherent thoughts, exprefied in a like
" parcel of irregular ftanzas, which alfo confill of
" fuch another complication of difproportioned, un-
" certain, and perplexed verfcs and rhymes. And
*' I appeal to any Reader, if this is not the condition
" in which thefe titular Odes appeared.
" On the contrary (adds he) there is nothing more
*' regular than the Od^s of Pindar, both as to the
*' exaft obfervation of the meafures and numbers of
" his Itanzas -nd verfes, and the perpetual coherence
" of his thoughts : for though his digreffions are fre-
" quent, and his tranfitions fudden, yet is there ever
*' fome fecret connedion, which, though not always
*' appearing to the eye, never fails to communicate it-
*' felf to the underftanding of the reader."
Upon thefe two points, namely, the regularity of
meafure in Pindar's Odes, and the connection of his
thoughts, I Hiall beg leave to make a few obfer-
vations.
Thefe
PREFACE. 121
Thefe Odes were all compofed to be fung by a Chorus,
either at the entertainments given by the Conquerors
(to whom they were infcribed) or their friends, on
account of their viftories, or at the folemn facrilices
made to the Gods upon thofe occafions. They confift
generally of three flanzas, of which the following ac-
count was communicated to me by a learned and in-
genious Friend,
" Befides what is faid of the Greek Ode in the
" Scholiaft upon Pindar, 1 find (fays he) the follow-
*' ing paffage in the Scholia on Kephaellion ; it is the
" very lalt paragraph of thofe Scholia."
The pafTage cited by him is in Greek, inllead of
which I {hall infert the Tranflation of it in Englifh.
Tou muft knoHx^ that the Ancients (in their Odes )
framed two larger flanzas, and one lefs ; the firit of
the larger flanzas they called Strophe, y??/^/;?^ it on their
fefti-jals at the altars of the Gods, and danci-ng at the
fame time. The fecond they called Antillrophe, in
^ixhich they inserted the dance. The leffer Jianza ivas
named the Epode, ^vhich they fung fandrng fill. The
Strophe, as they fay, denoted the ?notion of the higher
Sphere, the Antiilrophe that of the Planets, the Epode
the fixed iiation and repofe cf the Earth.
" From this paflage it appears evident that thefc
" Odes were accompanied with dancing , and that
" they danced one way while the Strophe was fmging,
« and then danced back again while the Antiilrophe
" was fung : Which fnews why thofe two Parts con-
" fifted of the fame length and meafure ; then^ when
« the
.122 P R E P A C E.
"^^ the Dancers were returned to the place whence they
«« fet out, before they renewed the dance they flood
■" ftill while the Epode was fung.
" If the fame perfons both danced and fung, when
" we confider how much breath is required for a full
" Song, perhaps one may incline to think, that the
" Strophe and Antiftrophe partook fomething of the
" Recitative manner, and that the Epode was the
*' more compleat Air.
" There is a pafTage in the ancient Grammarian,
*« Marius Viftorinus, which is much to the fame pur-
" pofe as this above, though he does not dillindtly
■" fpeak of dancing. The paffage is this:
" Pleraque Lyricorum carminum, quae verfu, co-
" lifque & commatibus componuntur, ex Strophe,
*' Antiftrophe, & Epodo, ut Gra;ci appellant, ordinata
•'' fubfiftunt. Quorum ratio talis eft. Antiqui Deo-
-" rum laudes carminibus comprehenfas, circum aras
«' eorum euntes canebant. Cujus primum ambitum,
" quern ingrediebantur ex parte dextra, Strophen
" vocabant ; reverfionem autem fmiilrofum fadam,
**■ completo priore orbe, Antiftrophen appellabant-
" Deinde in confpe£tu Deorum foliti confiftere cantici,
" reliqua confequebantur, apellantes id Epodon.
" The Writers I have quoted fpeak only of Odes,
" fung in the temples : birt Demetrius Triclinius,
*' upon tlie meafures of Sophocles, fays the fame
** thing upon the Odes of the Tragick Chorus.
*' What the Scholiall upon Hephasftion, cited above,
'* adds about the Heavenly Motions, &c. is alfo faid
*' by
i
PREFACE, 123
** by Viiflorinus, and by Demetrius Triclinius, and,
*' likewiie by the Scholiail: on Pindar. Yet I confider
** this in no other light than I do the fantaftical con-
*' ceits with which the Writers on Mulic abound.
*' Ptolemy, out of his three Eooks of Harmonics,
" employs one almoil: entirely upon comparing the
*' principles of Mufic with the motions of the Planets,
" the faculties of the mind, and other fuch ridiculous
" imaginations. And ArilHdes Quintilianus, fup-
" pofed an older Author, is full of the fame fooleries.
*' Marius Viclorinus has another fcheme alfo, viz.
" that the dancing forwards and backwards was in-
" vented by Thefeus, in memory of the labyrinth
" out of which he efcaped. But all this is taking
** much unneccilary pains to account why, when
*' Dancers have gone as far as they can one way,
** they Ihould return back again ; or at leail not dance
" in the fame circle till they are giddy."
Such was the llrudlure of the Greek Ode, in which
the Strophe and the Antiibophe, i. e. the iirft and
fecond ftanzas, contained always the fame number and
the fame kind of verfes. The Epode was of a differ-
ent length and meafure ; and if the Ode ran out into
any length, it was always divided into Triplets of
flanzas, the two firft being conftantly of the fame length
and meafure, and all the Epodes in like manner cor-
refponding exadly with each other: from all which
the regularity of this kind of compofitions is fuffxiently
evident. There are indeed fome Odes, which confiil
of Strophes, and Amiilrophes without any Epode;
and
J24 PREFACE.
and others which are made up of Strophes only, of
different lengths and meafures. But the greateft num-
ber of Pindar's Odes are of the firfl kind.
I have in the tranflation retained the names of Stro-
phe and Antiftrophe, on purpofe to imprint the more
ftrohgly on the Mind of the Engliih reader, the exa6l
regularity obferved by Pindar in the ilruflure of his
Odes; and have even followed his example in one,
which in the original confiils only of two Strophes.
Another charge againft Pindar relates to the fuppofed
v/ildnefs of his imagination, his extravagant digref-
fions, and fudden tranfitions, which leads me to con-
sider the fecond point, viz. the conneSiion of his thoughts.
Upon which I Ihall fay but little in this place, having
endeavoured to point out the conneciion, and account for
many of the digreijions, in my Arguments and Notes*
to the feveral Odes which I have tranflated. Here
therefore I Ihall only obferve in general, that whoever
imagines the 'victories and praifes of the Conquerors
are the ^to^qy fubje&s of the Odes infcribed to them,
v^ill find himfelf miftaken. Thefe ^iciories indeed gave
occafion to thefe fongs of triumph, and are therefore
conirantly taken notice of by the Poet, as are alfo any
particular and remarkable circumftances relating to
thetn^ or to the lives and charadlers of the Conquerors
themfelves: but, as fuch circumftances could rarely
furnifli out matter fufficient for an Ode of any length,
ib would it have been an indecency unknown to the
See p. 126.
civil
PREFACE. 125
civil equality and freedom, as well as to the fimplicity
of the age in which Pindar lived, to have filled a poem
intended to be fung in public, and even at the altars
of the gods, with the praifes of one man only; who,
befides, was often no otheruife confiderable, but as
the viifiory which gave cccafion to the Ode had made
him. For thefe reafons, the Poet, in order to give
his poem its due extent, was obliged to have recourfe
to other circumftances, arifmg either from the family
or country of the Conqueror, from the Games in which
he had come off vi<ftorious, or from the particular
deities who had any relation to the occafion, or in
whofe temples the Ode was intended to be fung. All
thefe, and many other particulars, v«/hich the reading
the Odes of Pindar may fuggeil to an attentive obfer-
ver, gave hints to the Poet, and led him into thofe
frequent digreffions, and quick tranfitions ; which it
is no wonder fhould appear to us at this diilance of
time and place both extravagant and unaccountable.
Upon the Vv^hole, I am perfuaded that whoever will
confider the Odes of Pindar with regard to the man-
ners and cuftoms of the age in which they were writ-
ten, the occafions which gave birth to them, and the
places in which they were intended to be recited, will
find little reafon to cenfure Pindar for want of order
and regularity in the plans of his compofitions. On
the contrary, perhaps, he will be inclined to admire
him, for raifmg fo many beauties from fuch trivial
hints, and for kindling, as he fometimes does, fo great
a flame from a fmgle fpark, and with fo little fuel.
There
126 P R E F A C E.
There is ftill another prejudice againft Pindar, which
may arife in the minds of thofe people who are not
thoroughly acquainted with ancient Hillory, and who
may therefore be apt to think meanly of Odes, in-
icribed to a fet of Conquerors, whom poffibly they
may look upon only as fo many Prize-fighters and
Jockeys. To obviate- this prejudice, I have preiixed
to my tranflation of Pindar's Odes a Difiertation * on
the Olympick Games : in which the reader will fee what
kind of perfons thefe Conquerors were, and what was
the nature of thofe famous Games ; of which every
one, who has but juft looked into the hillory cf Greece,
mull know enough to defire to be better acquainted
with them. The collection is as full as I have been
able to make it, afliited by the labours of a learned
Frenchman, Pierre du Faur, who, in his Book intituled
Agonifticon, hath gathered almolt every thing that is
mentioned in any of the Greek or Latin Writers re-
lating to the Grecian Games, which he has thrown to-
gether in no very clear order; as is obferved by his
Countryman Monf. Burette,, who hath written feveral
pieces on the fubjedl of the Gymnaftick Exercifes, in-
ferted in the Second Volume of " Memoires de I'Aca-
" demie Royale, &c." printed at Amilerdam, 1719.
In this Difiertation I have endeavoured to give a com-
plete Hiftory of the Olympick Games : of which kind
* For this Diflertatlon, and the learned Author's copious
notes in the following Odes, we mult refer the curious
reader to the work at large. N.
there
PREFACE. 121
there is not, that I know of, any treatife now extant;
thofe written upon this fubjedl by fome of the An-
cients being all lofr, and not being fupplied by any
learned Modern, at leaft not fo fully as might have
been done, and as fo confiderable an article of the Gre-
cian Antiquities feemed to demand. As I flatter my-
felf that even the learned Reader will in this DiiTer-
tation meet with many points which have hitherto
cfcaped his notice, and much light reileded from
thence upon the Odes of Pindar in particular, as well
as upon many paflages in other Greek Writers, I fnall
rather defire him. to excufe thofe errors and defects
which he may happen to difcover in it, than apologize
for the length of it.
Having now removed the chief prejudices and ob-
jeftions which have been too long and too generally
entertained againlt the Writings of Pindar, I need fay
but little of his real charatfter, as the principal parts of
it may be colledled from the v^ry faults imputed to
him ; which are indeed no other than the exceffes of
great and acknowledged beauties, fach as a poetical,
imagination, a warm and enthufiafiic genius, a bold
and figurative expreffion, and a concife and fententious
frile. Thefe are the charafteriftical beauties of Pin-
dar; and to thefe his greatefl: blemiihes, generally
fpeaking, are fo near allied, that they have fometimes
been miftaken for each other. I cannot however help
cbferving, that he is fo entirely free from any thing
like the far-fetched thoughts, the witty extravagances^
6 and.
128 PREFACE.
and puerile concetti of Mr. Cowley and the reft of his
Imitators, that I cannot recolledl fo much as even a
fmgle anthhejis in all his Odes.
Longinus indeed confefles, that Pindar's flame is
fometimes extinguifhed, and that he now and then
fmks unexpeftedly and unaccountably; but he prefers
liim, with all his faults, to a Poet who keeps on in
one conftant tenour of mediocrity, and who, though he
feldom falls very low, yet never rifes to thofe aftoniih-
ing heights, which fometimes make the head even of
a great Poet giddy, and occafion thofe flips which they
at the fame time excufe.
But, notwithflanding all that has or can be faid in
favour of Pindar, he mull flill appear^ as I before ob-
ferved, under great difadvantages, efpecially to the
Englifli Reader. Much of this fire, which formerly
v/armed and dazzled all Greece, mufl neceflfarily be
loft even in the beft Tranflation. Befides, to fay no-
thing of many Beauties peculiar to the Greek, which
cannot be exprefl^^d in Englilh, and perhaps not in any
other language, there are in thefe Odes fo many re-
ferences to fecret hiftory, fo many allufions to perfons,
things, and places, now altogether unknown, and
which, were they known, would very little intereft or
afFedl the Reader, and withal fuch a mixture of My-
thology and Antiquity, that I almcit defpair of their
being reliflied by any, but thofe who have, if not a
great deal of clajjical learning, yet fomewhat at leall
of an antiqjie and clajjical tajle.
Every
PREFACE. 129
Every Reader, however, may Hill find in Pindar
fbmething to make amends for the lofs of thofe beau-
ties, which have been fet at too great a diilance, ancf
in fome places worn off and obliterated by time ;
namely, a great deal of good fenfe, many wife reflec-
tions, and many moral fentences, together with a due
regard to religion ; and from hence he may be able to
form to himfelf fome idea of Pindar as a Man, though
he fhould be obliged to take his character as a Poet
from others.
But that he may not for this rely altogether upon
my opinion, I fhall here produce the teitimonies of
two great Poets, whofe excellent writings are fafficient
evidences both of their tafte and judgment. The firil
was long and univerfally admired, and is iHll as much
regretted, by the prefent age : the latter,, who wrote
about feventeen hundred years ago, was the delight and
ornament of the politeA and moft learned age of Rome.
And though even to him, Pindar, v>'ho lived fome
centuries before him, muft have appeared under fome
of the difadvantages above mentioned, yet he had the
opportunity of feeing all his works which were extant
in his time, and of which he hath given a fort of ca-
talogue, together with their feveral characters : an ad-
vantage which the former wanted, who mull therefore
be underftood to fpeak only of thofe Odes which are
now remaining. And indeed he alludes to thofe only,
in the following paflage of his " Temple of Fame."
Pope's Works, fmaU Edit. VoL III. p. 17. ver. 210.
Vol. LVII. K « Four
J30 PREFACE.
** Four Swans * fuftain a car of filver bright^
** With heads advancM, and pinions ftretch'd for flight i
*' Here, like fonie furious prophet, Pindar rode,
•* And feem'd to labour with th' infpiring God.
" Acrofs the harp a carelefs hand he flings,
" And boldly finks into the founding fl:rings.
'* The figur'd Q2Lm.es of Greece the column grace,
*' Neptune and Jove furvey the rapid race :
" The youths hang o'er their chariots as they run j
*< The fiery fteeds feem flarting from the flone :
« The champions in diilorted poilures threat ;
"' And all appear 'd irregularly great."
The other Pafliage is from Horace, lib. IV. Ode ii*
viz.
" Pindarum qulfquis fludet aimulari, &c.'*
which, for the benefit of the Englifli Reader, I have
thus tranflated :
He, who afpires to reach the towering height
Of matchlefs Pindar's heaven -afcending ftrain.
Shall fmk, unequal to the arduous flight.
Like him, who falling nam'd th' Icarian main ;
* Four fivans fu/ainj ifj'c.'] Pindar, being feated in a
Chariot, alludes to the Horfe-races he celebrated In the
Grecian Games." The fwans are emblems of poetry ; their
foaring pofture intimates the fubllmity and acflivlty of his
genius. Neptune prefided over the Ifthmlan, and Jupiter
over the Olympian Games. This note is of the fame
Author.
Per-
PREFACE. 131
Prefumptuous youth ! to tempt forbidden Ikies !
And hope above the clouds on ■-•jaxen plumes to rife !
Pindar, like fome fierce torrent fwoln with fnowers.
Or fudden catarafts of melting fnow.
Which from the Alps its headlong deluge pours.
And foams and thunders o'er the vales below.
With defultory fury borne along.
Roils his impetuous, vaft, unfathomable fong.
The Delphick laurel ever fure to gain ;
Whether with lawlefs Dithyrambick rage
Wild and tumultuous flows the founding Ilrain ;
Or in more order 'd verfe fublimely fage
To Gods and Sons of Gods his lyre he firings.
And of fierce Centaurs flain, and dire Chimsera fmgs.
Or whether Pifa's Viclors be his theme,
• The valiant champion and the rapid ileed ;
Who" from the banks of Alpheus, facred ftream.
Triumphant bear Olympia's olive meed ;
And from their Bard receive the tuneful boon.
Richer than fculptur'd brafs, or imitating ftone.
Or whether with the widow'd mourner's tear.
He mingles foft his Elegiac fong ;
With Dorian ftrains to deck th' untimely bier
Of fome difaftrous bridegroom fair and young ;
Whofe virtues, in his deifying lays.
Through the black gloom of death with liar-like
radiance blaze.
K 2 When
132 PREFACE.
When to the clouds, along th' asthereal plain.
His airy way the Theban Swan purfues.
Strong rapid gales his founding plumes fuftain :
While, wondering at his flight, my timorous Mufe
In ftiort excurfions tires her feeble wings.
And in fequefter'd fhades and flowery gardens fings.
There, like the bee, that, from each odorous bloom..
Each fragrant offspring of the dewy field.
With painful art, extrads the rich perfume,.
Solicitous her honied dome to build.
Exerting all her induftry and care.
She toils witli humble fweets her meaner verfe to rear.
The remainder of this Ode has no relation to tlic
prefent fubject, and is therefore omitted.
The following Collection of Poems (to borrow the
metaphor made ufe of by Horace) confifls wholly of
fweets, drawn from the rich and flowery fields of
Greece. And if in thefe Tranflations any of the na-
tive fpirit and fragrancy of the Originals fliall appear
to be transfufcd, I fliall content myfelf with the hum-
ble merit of the little laborious infed above mentioned.
But I muft not here omit acquainting the Reader, that
among thefe, im.mediately after the Odes of Pindar, is
inferted a tranflation of an Ode * of Horace, done by
* This Ode, in full conformity to Mr. Weft's intention-,
is ftill (though reftored to its proper writer) preferved in the
prefent volume.
a Gen-
PREFACE. 133
a Gentleman, the peculiar excellence of whofe genius
hath often revealed what his modefty would have kept
a fecret. And to this I might have trufted to in-
form the world, that the Tranllation I am now fpeak-
ing of, though inferted amongil: mine, was not done
by me, were I not defirous of teitifying the pride and
pleafure I take in feeing, in this and fome other in-
ilunces, his admirable pieces blended and joined with
mine ; an evidence and emblem at the fame time of
that friendihip, which hath long fubfilled between us,
and which I fhall always eileem a fmgular felicity and
honour to myfelf.
The Authors, from whom the other pieces are tranf-
lated, are fo well known, that I need fay nothing of
them in this place ; neither Ihall I detain the Reader
with any farther account of the tranilations them-
felves, than only to acquaint him, that I tranllated
the Dramatic Poem of Lucian upon the Gout, when I
was myfelf under an attack of that incurable diftem-
per, which I mention by way of excufe ; and that all
the other pieces, excepting only the Hymn of Cleanthes,
were written many years ago, at a time when I read
and wrote, like moH other people, for amufement only.
If the Reader finds they give any to him, I iliall be
very glad of it ; for it is doing fome fervice to human
fociety, fo arnuj'e innocentlj ; and they know very little
of human nature, who think it can bear to be always
employed either in the exercife of its duties, or in high
and important meditations.
K3 ODE
[ >34 ]
ODE
OCCASIONED BY READING
MR. WEST'S TRANSLATION OF PINDAR.
By the Reverend Mr. Joseph W a r t o n.
I. I.
ALBION, exult! thy fons a voice divine have heard,
The Man of Thebes hath in thy vales appeared !
Hark ! with frelh rage and undiminiili'd fire.
The fweet enthufiafl: fmites the Britifh lyre ;
The founds that echoed on Alpheus' ilreams.
Reach the delighted ear of lifteniiig Thames ;
Lo ! fvvift acrofs the dufly plain
Great Theron's foaming courfers ftrain !
What mortal tongue e'er roll'd along
Such full impetuous tides of nervous fong ?
I. 2.
The fearful, frigid lays of cold and creeping art.
Nor touch, nor can tranfport th' unfeeling heart ;
Pindar, our inmoft bofom piercing, warms
With glory's love, and eager thirll: of arms :
When freedom fpeaks in his majeftic ftrain.
The patriot-paffions beat in every vein :
We loiig to fit with heroes old,
'Mid groves of vegetable gold,
* W^here Cadmus and Achilles dwell.
And flill of daring deeds and dangers tell,
* See 2 OI}Tnp. Od.
I. 3. Away,
ODE ON WEST'S PINDAR. 135
I. 3.
z^way, enervate Bards, away.
Who ipin the courtly, filken lay,
* As wreaths for fome vain Louis' head.
Or mourn fome foft Adonis dead :
No more your polifh'd Lyricks boalt.
In Britilh Pindar's ftrengtli o'erwhelm'd and lort :
As well might ye compare
The glimmerings of a waxen flame
(Emblem, of V'erfe correclly tame)
f To his own Etna's fulphur-fpouting caves.
When to Heaven's vault the fiery deluge raves.
When clouds and burning rocks dart through the trou-
bled air,
II I.
In roaring Catarads down Andes* channel'd deeps
Mark how enormous Orellana fweeps I
Monarch of might)' Floods ! fupremely ftrong.
Foaming from cliff to cliif he whirls along,
Swoln with an hundred hills' collecled fnows :
Thence over namelefs regions widely flows.
Round fragrant iiles, and citron-groves.
Where ilill the naked Indian roves.
And fafely builds his leafy bower.
From flavery far, and curil Iberian power ;
'* Alli:dlng to the French and Italian Lyrick Poets,
. t See I Pyth. Od.
K 4 U, 2. So
136 ODE ON WEST'S PINDAR, &c.
II. 2.
So rapid Pindar flows. — O Parent of the Lyre,
Let me for ever thy fweet fons admire !
O ancient Greece, but chief the Bard whofe lays
The matchlefs tale of Troy divine emblaze ;
And next Euripides, foft pity's prieft.
Who melts in ufeful Woes the bleeding bread ;
And him, who paints th' inceftuous king,
Whofe foul amaze and horror wring ;
Teach me to tafte their charms refin'd.
The richefl banquet of th' enraptur'd mind :
II. 3.
For the blell man, the Mufe's child *,
On whofe aufpicious birth Ihe fmil'd,
Whofe foul fhe form'd of purer fire.
For whom Ihe tun'd a golden lyre.
Seeks not in fighting fields renown :
No widows' midnight ihrieks, nor burning town.
The peaceful Poet pleafe :
Nor ceafelefs toils for fordid gains.
Nor purple pomp, nor wide domains.
Nor heaps of wealth, nor power, nor ftatefman's
fchemes.
Nor all deceiv'd ambition's feveriih dreams.
Lure his contented heart from the Aveet vale of eafe.
* Kor. lib. IV. Od, iii.
ODES
I 157 ]
ODES
OF
I N D A R.
Olympiacas miratus pri^mia palmce."
ViRG. Georg. 1. lii.
THE FIRST OLYMPICK ODE.
This Ode is infcribed to Hiero of Syracufe, who,
in the Seventy-third Olympiad, obtained the
Viftory in the Race of Single Horfes.
ARGUMENT.
THE fubjedl of this Ode being a vidory obtained by
Hiero in the Olympick Games, Pindar fets out with
(hewing the fuperiority and pre-eminence of thofe
Games over all others ; among which, he fays, they
hold the fame rank, as water (which, according to the
opinion of Thales and other Philofophersjvvasthe ori-
ginal of all things) among the elements, and Gold
among the gifts of Fortune. Wherefore, continues he,
O my heart, if thou art inclined to fmg of Games,
it would be as abfurd to thijik of any other but the
Olympick
J38 WES T'S POEMS.
Olympick Game?, as to look for flars in the fi^y
when the fun is Ihining in his meridian glory ; efpe-
cially as all the Guefts at Hiero's table (among which
number it is not improbable that Pindar was one at
this time) are fmgLig Odes upon that fubjed. From
the mention of Hiero, he falls into a fhort panegy-
rick upon his virtues, and then partes to what gave
occafion to this Ode, 'viz, his Olympick viclory;
under which head he makes honourable mention of
his horfe Phrenicus (for that was his nam.e), who
gained the vidory, and fpread his matter *s glory as
far as Pifa, or Olympia, the ancient refidence of
Pelops the fon of Tantalus ; into a long account of
whom he digreifes : and ridiculing, as abfurd and
impious, the ftory of his having been cut in pieces
by his father Tantalus, boiled and ferved up at an
entertainment given by him to the gods, relates
another flory, which he thought more to the honour
both of Pelops and the Gods. This relation he
concludes with the account of Pelops vanquiihing
Oenomaus, king of Pifa, in the chariot-race, and
by that vidory gaining his daughter Hippodamia,
fettling at Pifa, and being there honoured as a God.
From this relation the Poet falls again naturally
into an account of the Olympick Games, and, after
a iTiort refleclion upon the felicity of thofe who gain-
ed the Olympick crown, returns to the praifes of
Hiero ; with which, and fome occalional refledions
on the profperity of Hiero, to whom he wilhes a
continuance of his good fortune and a long reign,
}ie clofes his Ode.
S TRO-
O L Y M P 1 C K ODES. O d e I. 139
STROPHE I.
CHIEF of Nature's works divine.
Water, claims the higheil praiie :
Richeii offspring of the mine.
Gold, like fire, whole flalhing ray?
From afar confpicuous gleam.
Through the night's involving cloud,
Firll in luilre and efteem.
Decks the treafures of the proud :
So among the liils of fame
Pifa's honour'd games excell;
Then to Pifa's glorious name
Tune, O Mufe, thy founding ihell.
A N T I S T R O P H E I.
Who along the defert air
Seeks the faded Harry train.
When the fun's meridian car
Round illumes th' astherial plain ?
Who a nobler theme can chufe
Than Olympia's facred Games ?
What more apt to lire the Mufe,
When her various fongs ihe frames ?
Songs in Itrains of wifdom dreil
Great Saturnius to record.
And by each rejoicing guefl
Sung at Hiero's feailful board.
EPODE
uo WEST'S POE M S,
E P O D E I.
In paftoral Sicilia's fruitful foil
The righteous fceptre of imperial power
Great Hiero wielding, with illuftrious toil
Plucks every blooming virtue's faireftilower.
His royal fplendour to adorn:
Nor doth his fkilful hand refiife
Acquaintance with the tuneful Mufe,
When round the mirthful board the harp is borne.
STROPHE II.
Down then from the glittering nail
Take, O Mufe, thy Dorian lyre;
If the love of Pifa's vale
Pleafmg tranfports can infpire;
Or the rapid-footed fteed
Could with joy thy boTom mo\'^.
When, unwhipp'd with native fpeed
O'er the dufty courfehe drove;
And where deck'd with olives flows,
Alpheus, thy immortal flood.
On his lord's triumphant brows
The Olympick wreath beftow'd :
ANTISTROPHE 11.
Hiero's royal brows, whofe care
Tends the courfer's noble breed ;
Pleas'd to nurfe the pregnant mare.
Pleas 'd to train the youthful Heed.
Now
O L y M P I C K ODES. O d e I, 141
Now on that heroic land
His far-beaming glories beat.
Where with all his Lydian band
Pelops fix'd his honour'd feat:
Pelops, by the god belov'd,
Whofe ftrong arms the globe embrace ;
When by Jove's high orders mov'd
Clotho blefs'd the healing vafe.
E P O D E II.
Forth from the cauldron to new life reftor'd,
Pleas'dwith the luilre of his ivory arm
Young Pelops rofe; fo ancient tales record.
And oft thefe tales unheeding mortals charm;
While gaudy Fiftion, deck'd with art.
And drefs'd in every winning grace.
To Truth's unornamented face
Preferred, feduces oft the human heart,-
STROPHE III.
Add to thefe f^^eet Poefy,
Smooth inchantrefs of mankind.
Clad in whofe falfe majefty
Fables eafy credit find.
But ere long the rolling year
The deceitful tale explodes ;
Then, O man, with holy fear
Touch the charafters of Gods.
Of their heavenly natures fay
Nought unfeemly, nought profane.
So Ihalt thou due honour pay, •
So be ltqq from guilty {lain.
A N T I»
142 W E S T ' S P O E M S.
ANTISTROPHE UL
Differing then from ancient fame
I thy ftory will record :
How the Gods invited came
To thy father's genial board;
In his turn the holy feaft
When on Sipylus he fpread ;
1 o the tables of the bleft
In his turn with honour led.
Neptune then thy lovely face.
Son of Tantalus, furvey'd.
And with amorous embrace
Far away the prize convey 'd.
E P O D E III.
To the high palace of all-honour'd Jove
With Pelops fwift the golden chariot rolls.
There, like more ancient Ganymede, above
For Neptune he prepares the nedlar'd bowls.
But for her vanquilh'd fon in vain
When long his tender mother fought.
And tidings of his fate were brought
By none of all her much- inquiring train;
STROPHE IV.
O'er the envious realm with fpeed
A malicious rumour flew.
That, his heavenly guefts to feed.
Thee thy impious father flew :
In
O L Y M P I C K ODES. O d e L 143
In a cauldrcMi's feething flood
That thy mangled limbs were cafl.
Thence by each voracious God
On the board in melTes plac'd.
Butfhalllthe bleftabufe?
With fach tales to llain her fong
Far, far be it from my Mufe !
Vengeance waits th' unhallow'd tongue,
ANTISTROPHE IV.
Sure, if e'*er to man befel
Honour from the powers divine^
Who on high Olympus dwell,
Tantalus, the lot was thine.
But, alas 1 his mortal fenfe
All too feeble to digeil
The delights of blifs immenfe.
Sickened at the heavenly feaii,,
V»*hence, his folly to chailife.
O'er his head with pride elate,
Jove, great father of the fkies.
Hung a rock's enormous weight.
E P O D E IV.
Now vainly labouring with incefiant pains
Th' impending rock's expefted fall to ihun^.
The fourth diftrefsful inftance he remains
Of wretched man by impious pride undone .;
Who to his mortal gueib conveyed
Th' incorruptible food of Gods,
On which in their divine abodes
Himfelf eril feaiting was immortal made.
6 S T R O-
144 W E S T ' S P O E M S.
STROPHE V.
Vain is he, who hopes to cheat
The all-feeing eyes of Heaven:
From Olympus' blifsful feat.
For his father's theft, was driven
Pelops, to reiide once more
With frail man's fwift-paffing race,
Where (for now youth's blowing flower
Deck'd with opening pride his face ;
And with manly beauty fprung
On each, cheek the downy Ihade)
Ever burning for the young,
Hymen's fires his heart invade.
A N T I S T R O P H E V.
Anxious then th' Elean bride
From her royal fire to gain.
Near the billow -beaten fide
Of the foam-befilver'd main.
Darkling and alone he flood,
Invocating oft the name
Of the Trident-bearing god
Strait the Trident-bearer came :
** If the fweet delights of love,
" Which from Beauty's Queen defcend,
*' Can thy yielding bofom move,
" Mighty God, my caufe befriend.
E P O D E
O L Y M P I C K ODES. O d e I. 145
E P O D E V.
• With ftrong prevention let thy hand control
" The brazen lance of Pifa's furious king ;
' And to the honours of th' Elean goal
•* Me with unrival'd fpeed in triumph bring.
" Transfix'd by his unerring fpear,
*' Already thirteen youtlis have dy'd,
*' Yet he perfiib with cruel pride,
■ Hippodamia's nuptials to defer.
STROPHE VL
" In the paths of dangerous fame
" Trembling cOwards never tread :
**■ Yet fince all of mortal frame
*' Mufi be number'd with the dead,
" Who in dark inglorious fhade
'* Would his ufelefs life confume,
** And, with deedlefs years decay'd,
" Sink unhonour'd to the tomb r
*' I that Ihameful lot difdain ;
" I this doubtful lift will prove ;
'' May my vows from thee obtain
" Conqueft, and the prize of love!"
ANTISTROPHE VI.
Thus he pray'd, and mov'd the God ;
Who, his bold attempt to grace.
On the favour'd youth beftow'd
Steeds unwearied in the race ;
Vol. LVII. L ^Xqq^s,
146. WEST'S POEMS.
Steeds, with winged fpeed endued,
Harnefs'd to a golden carr.
So was Pifa's king fubdued ;
Pelops fo obtain 'd the fair ;
From whofe womb a noble brood,
Six illuftrious brothers came.
All with virtuous minds endow'd.
Leaders all of mighty fame.
E P O D E VI.
Now in the folemn fervice of the dead,
Rank'd with immortal Gods, great Pelops fliares ;
While to his altar, on the watery bed
Of Alpheus rais'd, from every clime repairs
The wondering ftranger, to behold
The glories of th' Olympick plain ;
Where, the refplendent wreath to gaiii.
Contend the fwift, the adlive, and the bold.
STROPHE Vll.
Happy he, whofe glorious brow
Pifa's honour'd chaplets crown '
Calm his ftream of life fhall flow,
Shelter'd by his high renown.
That alone is blifs fupreme.
Which, unknowing to decay.
Still with ever-fhining beam
Gladdens each fucceeding day.
Then for happy Hiero weave
Garlands of ^olian ftrains ;
Him thefe honours to receive
The Olympick law ordains.
ANTI-
OLYMPICK ODES. Ode I. 147
ANTISTROPHE VIL
No more worthy of her lay
Can the Mufe a mortal find ;
Greater in imperial fway.
Richer in a virtuous mind ;
Heaven, O king, with tender care
Waits thy wifties to fulfil.
Then ere long will I prepare,
Plac'd on Chronium's funny liill>
Thee in fweeter verfe to praife.
Following thy victorious fteeds ;
-If to profper all thy ways
Still thy Guardian God proceeds.
E P O D E VIL
fate hath in various ftations rank'd mankind:
In royal power the long gradations end.
By that horizon prudently confin'd.
Let not thy hopes to farther views extend.
Long may'ii thou wear the regal crown !
And may thy Bard his wifh receive.
With thee, and fuch as thee to live.
Around his native Greece for wifdom known '
L 2 THE
.148 WEST'S POEMS.
THE SECOND OLYMPICK ODE.
T'his Ode Is infcribecltoTheron Kingof Agrigen-
tum, who came off Conqueror in the Race of
Chariots drawn by four Horfes, in the Seventy-
feventh Olympiad.
ARGUMENT.
THE Poet, in anfwer to the queftion. What God,
what Hero, and what Mortal he Ihould fing (with
which words this Ode immediately begins) having
named Jupiter and Hercules, not only as the firrt of
gods and heroes, but as they were peculiarly related
to his fubjed; the one being the Protedor, and the
other the Founder of the Olympick Games ; falls
direftly into the praifes of Theron : by this method
artfully infmuating, that Theron held the fame rank
among all mortals, as the two former did ambng the
gods and heroes. In enumerating the many excel-
lencies of Theron, the Poet having made mention
of the nobility of his family (a topick feldom
or never omitted by Pindar) takes occafion to lay
before him the various accidents and viciilitudes of
human life, by inflances drawn from the hillory of
his own anceftors, the founders of Agrigentum;
who, it feems, underwent many difficulties, before
they could build, and fettle themfelves in that city ;
where afterwards, indeed, they made a very con-
fiderable figure, and were rewarded for their paft
fufferings
OL Y MPICK CD ES. Ode II. ij:^
fuiFerings with wealth and honour; according to
which method of proceeding, the Poet (alluding to
fome misfortunes that had befallen Theron) be-
feeches Jupiter to deal with their pofterity, by re-
compenfmg their former afflictions with a ferics of
peace and happinefs for the future ; in the enjoyment
of which they would foon lofe the memor)' of what-
ever they had fuffered in times part : the conftant
eiFe6l of profperity being to make men forget their
paft adveriity; which is the only reparation that can
be made to them for the miferies they have under-
gone. The truth of this pofition he makes appear
from the hiftory of the fame family ; by the farther
inilances of Semele, Ino, and Therfander; and
lallly, of Theron himfelf, whole former cares and
troubles, he infinuates, are repaid by his prelent
happinefs and vi6tory in the Olympick Games : for
his fuccefs in which, the Poet however intimates,
that Theron was no lefs indebted to his riches than
to his virtue, iince he was enabled by the one, as
well as difpofed by the other, to undergo the trouble
and expence that was necefiary to qualify him for a
candidate for the Olympick crown in particular, and,
in general, for the performance of any great and
worthy a6lion: for the v/ords are general. From
whence he takes occafion to tell him, that the man who
poffefTes thefe treafures, viz. Riches and Virtue, that
is, the means and the inclination of doing good and
great adions, has the farther fatisfadion of knowing,
that he fhall be rewarded for it hereafter,^ and go
.150 WEST'S POEMS,
among the heroes into the Fortunate Iflands (the Pa-
ladife of the Ancients), which he here defcribes ;
fome of whofe inhabitants are likewife mentioned
by way of inciting Theron to an imitation of their
adions; as Peleus, Cadmus, and Achilles. Here
the Poet, finding himfelf, as well from the abun-
dance of matter, as from the fertility of his own
genius, in danger of wandering too far from his
fubjed, recalls his Mufe, and returns to the praife
of Theron; whofe beneficence and generofity, he
tells us, were not to be equalled : with which, and
with fom.e reiledions upon the enemies and maligners
of Theron, he concludes.
STROPHE I.
YE choral hymns, harmonious lays.
Sweet rulers of the Lyrick firing.
What god ? what hero's god-like praife ?
What mortal Ihall we fing ?
With Jove, with Pifa's Guardian God,
Begin, O Mufe, th' Olympick Ode.
Alcides, Jove's heroick fon.
The fecond honours claims;
Who, offering up the fpoils from Augeas won>
Eftablifh'd to his fire th' Olympick Games;
Where bright in wreaths of Conqueft Theron (hone.
Then of viftorious Theron fing 1
Of Theron hofpitablc, jull, and great!
Fam'd Agrigentum's honour'd king.
The prop and bulwark of her towering Hate;
A righ-
OLVMPICK ODES. Ode. II. 151
A righteous prince ! whofe flowering virtues grace
The venerable Hem of his illulbious race :
A N T I S T R O P H E L
A race, long exercis'd in woes.
Ere, fmiling o'er her kindred flood.
The manfion of their wifli'd repofe.
Their facred city Itood;
And through amaz'd Sicilia fhone
The lullre of their fair renown.
Thence, as the milder Fates decreed.
In delHn'd order born,
Aufpicious hours with fmoother pace fucceed ;
While Power and Wealth the noble line adorn.
And Public Favour, Virtue's richell meed.
O Son of Rhea, God fupreme !
Whofe kingly hands th' Olympian fceptre wield !
Rever'd on Alpheus' facred ftream !
And' honour'd moft in Pifa's lifted field !
Propitious liften to my foothing iirai)i !
And to the worthy fons their father's rights maintain !
E P O D E I.
Peace on their future life, and wealth beflow ;
And bid their prefent moments calmly flow.
The deed once done no power can abrogate.
Not the great Sire of ail Things, Time, nor Fate.
But fweet oblivion of difaftrous care.
And good fucceeding, may tlie wrong repair.^
La " J.oit
152 W E S T'S P O E M S,
Loft in the brightnefs of returning day.
The gloomy terrors of the night decay ;
When Jove commands the Sun of Joy to rife.
And opens into fmiles the cloud-invelop'd r^res.
STROPHE IT.
Thy haplefs daughters' various fate
This moral truth, O Cadmus, fhovvs ;
Who vefted now with god-like ftate
On heavenly thrones repofe ;
And yet Alflidion's thorny road
In bitter anguilh once they trod.
Fut blifs fuperior hath eras'd
The memory of their woe ;
While Semele, on high Olympus plac'd.
To heavenly zephyrs- bids her treffes flow.
Once by devouring lightnings all defac'd.
There, with immortal charms improv'd>
Inhabitant of Heaven's ferene abodes
She dwells, by virgin Pallas lov'd,
Lov'd by Saturnius, father of the gods;
Lov'd by her youthful fon, whofe brows divine;^
In twifting ivy bound, with joy eternal fhine.
ANTISTROPHE II.
To Ino, Goddefs of the Main,
The Fates an equal lot decree,
Rank'd with old Ocean's Nereid train.
Bright daughters of the fea.
Deep
OLYMPICK ODES. O d e II. 153
Deep in the pearly realms below^
Immortal happinefs to know.
But here our day's appointed end
To mortals is unknown ;
Whether diftrefs our period fhall attend.
And in tumultuous ftorms our fun go dovvn^
Or to the (hades in peaceful calms defcend.
For various flows the tide of life,
Obnoxious ftill to Fortune's veering gale ;
Now rough with anguilh, care, and ftrife,
O'erwhelming waves the fhatter'd bark affail :
Now glide ferene and fmooth the limpid ftreams ;
And on the furface play Apollo's golden beams.
E P O D E II.
Thus, Fate, O Theron, that with blifs divine
And glory once enrich'd thy ancient line.
Again reverfmg every gracious deed.
Woe to thy wretched fires and fhame decreed ;
What time, encountering on the Phocian plain.
By lucklefs Oedipus was Laius flain.
To parricide by Fortune blindly led.
His father's precious life the hero (hed ;
Doom'd to fulfill the oracles of heaven.
To Thebes' ill-deftin'd king by Pythian Phoebus given^
STROPHE III.
But with a fierce avenging eye
Erinnys the foul murder view'd.
And bade his warring offspring die.
By mutual rage fubdued*
Pierc'd
154 WEST'S POEMS.
Pierc'd by his brother's hateful fteel
Thus haughty Polynices fell.
Therfander, born to calmer days,
Surviv'd his falling fire.
In youthful games to win immortal praife ;
Renown in martial combats to acquire.
And high in power th' AdralUan houfe to raife.
Forth from this venerable root
jiEnefidamus and his Theron fpring ;
For whom I touch my Dorian flute.
For whom triumphant ttrike my founding firing.
Due to his glory is th' Aonian ftrain,
Whofe virtue gain'd the prize in fam'd Olympia's plain.
ANTISTROPHE III.
Alone in fam'd Olympia's fand
The vii^or's chaplet Theron wore ;
But with him on the Iflhmian flrand.
On fweet Caftalia's fhore.
The verdant crowns, the proud reward
Of vidlory, his brother fhar'd.
Copartner in immortal praife.
As warm'd with equal zeal
The light-foot courfer's generous breed to raife.
And whirl around the goal the fervid wheel.
The painful ftrife Olympia's wreath repays :
But wealth with nobler virtue join'd
The means and fair occafions mult procure ;
In glory's chace mufl aid the mind,
Expence, and toil, and danger to endure ; "
With
OLYMPICK ODES. Ode II. 155
With mingling rays they feed each other's flame.
And liiine the brightell lamp in all the fphere of fame.
E P O D E III.
The happy mortal, who thefe treafures fliares.
Well knows what fate attends his generous cares ;
Knows, that beyond the verge of life and light.
In the fad regions of infernal night.
The tierce, impracticable, churlilh mind
Avenging gods and penal woes ihall find ;
Where ftrift inquiring juftice Ihall bewray
The crimes committed in the realms of day.
Th' impartial Judge the rigid law declares.
No more to be revers'd by penitence or prayers.
STROPHE IV.
But in the happy fields of light.
Where Phcebus with an equal ray
Illuminates the balmy night.
And gilds the cloudlefs day.
In peaceful, unmolefted joy.
The good their fmiling hours employ.
Them no uneafy wants conftrain
To vex th* ungrateful foil>
To tempt the dangers of the billowy main;,
And break their ftrength with unabating toil,
A frail difaftrous being to maintain.
But in their joyous calm abodes.
The recompence of julHce they receive;
And in the fellowfhip of gods
Without a tear eternal ages live,
6 While,
56 WEST'S POEMS.
While, banifh'd by the Fates from joy and rell.
Intolerable woes the impious foul infefl.
A N T I S T R O P H E IV.
But they who, in true virtue ftrong.
The third purgation can endure ;
And keep their minds from fraudful wrong
And guilt's contagion pure ;
They through the Itarry paths of Jove
To Saturn's blifsful feat remove ;
Where fragrant breezes, vernal airs.
Sweet children of the main.
Purge the bleft ifland from corroding cares.
And fan the bofom of each verdant plain :
Whofe fertile foil immortal fruitage bears ;
Trees, from whofe flaming branches flow
Array'd in golden bloom refulgent beams;
And flowers of golden hue, that blow
On the frefli borders of their parent Ilreams.
Thefe, by the bleil in folemn triumph worn.
Their unpolluted hands and cluftering locks adorn,
E P O D E IV.
Such is the righteous will, the high beheft.
Of Rhadamanthus, ruler of the blefl ;
The juft aflfeflTor of the throne divine.
On which, high rais'd above all gods, recline,
Link'd in the golden bands of wedded love.
The great progenitors of thundering Jove.
There^
OLYMPICK ODES. Ode II. 157
There, in the number of the bleil enroll'd.
Live Cadmus, Peleus, heroes fam'd of old ;
And young Achilles, to thofe iilc^s rcmov'd.
Soon as, by Thetis won, relenting Jove appro v'd :
STROPHE V.
Achilles, vvhofe refiftlefs might
Troy's rtable pillar overthrew.
The valiant Keclor, firm in fight.
And h-.rdy Cygnus flew.
And Memnon, offspring of the morn.
In torrid ^Ethiopia born —
Yet in my well-ilor'd breall: remain
Materials to fupply
With copious argument my moral ftrain,
Whofe myilic fenfe the wife alone defcry.
Still to the vulgar founding harfh and vain.
He only, in whofe ample breaft
Nature hath true inherent genius pour'd.
The praife of wifdom may conteft ;
Not they who, with loquacious learning flor'd.
Like crows and chattering jays, with clamorous cries
Purfue the bird of Jove, that fails along the Ikies.
ANTISTROPHE V.
Come on I thy brighteft Ihafts prepare.
And bend, O Mufe, thy founding bow ;
Say, through what paths of liquid air
Our arrows fhall we throw i
On
158 WEST'S POEMS.
On Agrigentum fix thine eye.
Thither let all thy quiver fly.
And thou, O Agrigentum, hear.
While, with religious dread,
And taught the laws of juftice to revere.
To heavenly vengeance I devote my head.
If aught to truth repugnant now I fwear.
Swear, that no Hate, revolving o'er
The long memorials of recorded days.
Can fhew in all her boalled ftore
A name to parallel thy Theron's praife ;
One to the ads of friendfhip fo inclin'd.
So fam'd for bounteous deeds, and love of human kind.
E P O D E V.
Yet hath obflreperous envy fought to drown
The goodly mufick of his fvveet renown ;
While, by fome frantic fpirits borne along
To mad attempts of violence and wrong.
She turn'd againft him fadion's raging flood.
And ftrove with evil deeds to conquer good.
But who can number every fandy grain
Walh'd by Sicilia's hoarfe-refounding main ?
Or who can Theron's generous works exprefs.
And tell how many hearts his bounteous virtues blefs !
THE
OLYMPICK ODES. Ode III. 159
THE THIRD OLYMPICK ODE.
This Ode is likevvife infcribed to Theron King of
Agrigentum, upon the Occafion of another Vic-
tory obtained by him in the Chariot-Race at
Olympia ; the Date of which is unknown.
THE Scholiaft acquaints us, that as Theron was cele-
brating the Theoxenia (a feftival inlHtuted by Carter
and Pollux in honour of all the gods) he received the
news of a victory obtained by his chariot in the
Olympick Games : from this circumftance the Poet
takes occafion to addrefs this Ode to thofe two deities
and their fifter Helena, in whofe temple, the fame
Scholiaft informs us, fome people with greateft pro-
bability conjectured, it was fung, at a folemn facrifice
there offered by Theron to thofe deities, and to Her-
cules, alfo, as may be inferred from a paflage in the
third Strophe of the Tranflation. But there is an-
other, and a more poetical propriety in Pindar's in-
voking thefe divinities, that is fuggefted in the Ode
itfelf: for, after mentioning the occafion of his com-
pofmg it, namely, the Olympick vidlory of Theron,
and faying that a triumphal fong was a tribute due
to that perfon upon whom the Hellanodick, or
Judge of the Games, bellowed the facred OHve, ac-
cording
i6o WEST'S POEMS.
cording to the inflitution of their firft founder Her-
cules, he proceeds to relate the fabulous, but le-
gendary flory, of that Hero's having brought that
plant originally from Scythia, the country of the
Hyperboreans, to Olympia ; having planted it there
near the temple of Jupiter, and ordered that the
victors in thofe games ihould, for the future, be
crowned with the branches of this facred tree. To
this he adds, that Hercules, upon his being removed
to heaven, appointed the twin-brothers, Caftor and
Pollux, to celebrate the Olympick Games, and exe-
cute the office of bellowing the Olive-crown upon
thofe who obtained the viftory ; and now, continues
Pindar, he comes a propitious gueft, to this facrifice
of Theron, in company with the two fons of Leda,
who, to reward the piety and zeal of Theron and
his family, have given them fuccefs and glory ;
to the utmoft limits of which he infmuates that
Theron is arrived, and fo concludes with affirming,
that it would be in vain for any man^ wife or unwife,
to attempt to furpafs him.
TO
OLYMPICK ODES. Ode IIL i6i
T O
THERON KING OF AGRIGENTUM.
STROPHE I.
W/ H I L E to the fame of Agragas I fing,
For Theron wake th' Olympick firing.
And with Aonian garlands grace
His fteeds umveary'd in the race,
O may the hofpitable twins of Jove,
And bright- hair 'd Helena, the fong approve !
For this the Mufe beftow'd her aid.
As in new meafures I effay'd
To harmonize the tuneful words.
And fet to Dorian airs my founding chords,
ANTISTROPHE I.
And lo ! the conquering fteeds, whofe toffing heads
Olympia's verdant wreath befpreads.
The Mufe -imparted tribute claim.
Due, Theron, to thy glorious name ;
And bid me temper in their mafter's praife
The flute, the warbling lyre, and melting lays,
Lo ! Pifa too the fong requires !
Elean Pifa, that infpires
The glowing Bard with eager care
His heaven-direfted prefent to prepare :
. Vol. LVII. M EPODE
i62 WEST'S POEMS.
E P O D E I.
The prefent offer'd to his virtuous fame.
On whofe enobled brows
The righteous umpire of the facred game,
Th' ^tolian judge, beflows
The darkfonie olive, liudious to fulfill
The. mighty founder's will.
Who this fair enfign of Olympick toil
From diilant Scythia's fruitful foil,
And Hyperborean Iftcr's woody Ihore,
WitK fair entreaties gain'd, to Grecian Elis bore.
STROPHE II.
The blamelefs fervants of the Delphick God
With joy the valued gifts beftow'd ;
Mov'd by the friendly chief to grant.
On terms of peace, the facred plant,
Deftin'd at once to fliade Jove's honour'd ftirine
And crown heroick worth with wreaths divine.
For now full-orb'd the wandering moon
In plenitude of brightnefs (hone.
And on the fpacious eye of night
Pour'd all the radiance of her golden light :
A N T I S T R O P H E II.
Now on Jove's altars blaz'd the hallow'd flames.
And now were iix'd the mighty games.
Again, when e'er the circling fun.
Four times his annual courfe had run.
Their period to renew, and Ihine again
On Alpheus' craggy fhores and Pifa's plain :
But
OLYMPICK ODES. Ode III. 163
But fubjedt all die region lay-
To the fierce fun's infulting ray.
While upon Pelops* burning vale
No Ihade arofe his fury to repeil.
E P O D E II.
Then traverfmg the hills, whofe jutting bafc
Indents Arcadia's meads.
To where the virgin goddefs of the chace
Impells her foaming fleeds.
To Scythian Ifler he direfts his way,
Doom'd by his father to obey
The rigid pleafures of Mycens's king.
And thence the rapid hind to bring.
Whom, facred prefent for the Orthian maid.
Vrith horns of branching gold, Taygeta array'd,
STROPHE IIL
There as the longfome chace the chief purfued.
The fpacious Scythian plains he view'd ;
A land beyond the chilling blail
And northern caves of Boreas call :
There too the groves of olive he furvey'd.
And gaz'd with rapture on the pleafing lliade.
Thence by the wondering hero borne
The goals of Elis to adorn.
And now to Theron's facred feaft
^^'ith Leda's twins he comes, propitious gueft !
M 2 ANTI-
i64 WEST'S POEMS.
ANTISTROPHE III.
To Leda's twins (when heaven's divine abodes
He fought, and mingled with the gods)
He gave th' illuftrious Games to hold.
And crown the fwift, the llrong, and bold.
Then, Mufe, to Theron and his houfe proclaim
The joyous tidings of fuccefs and fame.
By Leda's twins beftow'd to grace,
Emmenides, thy pious race.
Who, mindful of heaven's high behefts.
With llrideft zeal obferve their holy feafts.
E P O D E III.
As water's vital ftreams all things furpafs.
As gold's all-worfliip'd ore
Holds amid fortune's ftores the highell clafs ;
So to that diftant fliore.
To where the pillars of Alcides rife,
pame's utmoft boundaries,
Theron, purfuing his fuccefsful way.
Hath deck'd with glory's brightefl: ray
His lineal virtues. — Farther to attain.
Wife, and unwife, with me defpair : th' attempt were
vain.
THE
OLYMPICK ODES. Ode V. 165
THE FIFTH OLYMPICK ODE.
THIS Ode is infcribed to Pfaumis of Camarina (a
town in Sicily, who, in the eighty-fecond Olym-
piad, obtained three vidlories ; one in the race of
chariots drawn by four horfes ; a fecond in the race
of the Apene, or chariot drav/n by mules, and a
third in the race of fmgle horfe?.
Some people (it feems) have doubted, whether this
Ode be Pindar's, for certain reafons, which, toge-
ther with the arguments on the other fide, the learn-
ed reader may find in the Oxford edition and others
of this author; where it is clearly proved to be ge-
nuine. But, befides the reafons there given for
doubting if this Ode be Pindar's, there is another
(though not mentioned, as I know of, by any one)
which may have helped to biafs people in their judg-
ment upon this quelrion. I iTiall therefore beg leave
to confider it a little, becaufe what I fhall fay upon
that head, will tend to illullrate both the meaning
and the method of Pindar in this Ode. In the Greek
editions of this x^uthor there are two Odes (of
which this is the fecond) infcribed to the fame Pfau-
mis, and dated both in the fame Olympiad, But
they differ from each other in feveral particulars,
as well in the matter as the manner. In the fecond
Ode, notice is taken of three viftories obtained by
Pfaumis ; in tlie firil, of only one,, viz. that ob-
M 3 taincd
i66 WEST'S POEMS.
talned by him in the race of chariots drawn by four
horfes : in the fecond, not only the city of Cama-
rina, but the lake of the fame name, many rivers
adjoining to it, and fome circumftances relating to the
prefent ftate, and the rebuilding of that city (which
had been deftroyed by the Syracufians fome years
before) are mentioned ;: whereas in the firft, Cama-
rina is barely named, as the country of the conque-
ror, and as it were out of form : from all whicli I
conclude, that diefe two Odes were comxpofed to be
fung at different times, and in different places ; the
firft at Olympia, immediately upon Pfaumis's being
proclaimed conqueror in the chariot-race, and be-
fore he obtained his otker two viftories. This may
with great probability be inferred, as well from no
mention being tkere made of tliofe two vidories,
as from the prayer which the poet fubjcins imme-
diately to his account of the firft, viz. that heaven
would in like manner be favourable to tke reft of
the vidlor's wifnes ; which prayer, though it be in,
general words, and one frequently ufed by Pindar
in other of his Odes, yet has a peculiar beauty and
propriety, if taken to relate to the other two exer-
cifes, in which Pfaumis was ftill to contend; and
in which ke afterwards came off victorious. That
it was the cuftom for a conqueror, at the time of
his being proclaimed, to be attended by a chorus,
v/ho fung a fong of triumph in honour of his vic-
tory, I hav? obferved in tke Differtation prefixed to
tkefe
OLYMPICK ODES. Ode V. 167
thefe Odes*. In the fecond, there are To many
marks of its having been made to be fung at the
triumphal entry of Pfaumis into his own country,
and thofe fo evident, that, after tliis hint given,
the reader cannot help obferving them as he goes
through the Ode. I (hall therefore fay nothing
more of them in this place ; but that they tend, by
Ihewing for what occafion this Ode was calculated,
to confirm what I faid relating to the other ; and
jointly with that to prove, that there is no reafon to
conclude from there being two Odes infcribed to
the fame perfon, and dated in the fame Olympiad,
that the latter is not Pindar's, efpecally as it ap-
pears, both in the llyle and fpirit, altogether worthy
of him.
THE Poet begins with addreffing himfelf to Cama-
rina, a fea nymph, from whom the city and lake
were both named, to befpeak a favourable reception
of his Ode, a prefent which he tells her was made
to her by Pfaumis, who rendered her city illuilrious
at the Olympick Games ; where having obtained
three viclories, he confecrated his fame to Camarina,
by ordering the herald, when he proclaimed him
conqueror, to ftyle him of that city. This he did
at Olympia ; but nov/, continues Pindar, upon his
coming home, he is more particular, and inferts in
' See Mr. Well's Preface, p. iz6.
M 4 kU
j6S WEST'S POEMS.
his triumphal fong the names of the principal places
and rivers belonging to Camarina ; from whence
the Poet takes occafion to fpeak of the rebuild'mg of
that city, which was done about this time, and of
the ftate of glory, to which, out of her low and
miferable condition, ftie was now brought by the
means of Pfaumis, and by the luftre cait on her by
his vidories ; viflories (fays he) not to be obtained
without much labour and cxpence, the ufual atten-
dants of great and glorious anions ; but the man
who fucceeded in fuch-like undertakings, was fure
to be rewarded with the love and approbation of
his country. The Poet then addreffes himfelf to
Jupiter in a prayer, befeeching him. to adorn the city
and ftate of Camarina with virtue and glory ; and
to grant to the viftor Pfaumis a joyful and con-
tented old age, and the happinefs of dying before his
children : after which he concludes with an exhor-
tation to Pfaumis, to be contented with his condi-
tion ; which he infmuates was as happy as that of
a mortal could be, and it was to no purpofe for him
to wilh to be a god.
STROPHE.
p A I R Cam.arina, daughter of the main,
^ With gracious fmiles this choral fong receive.
Sweet fruit of virtuous toils ; whofe noble flrain
Shall to th' Olympick wreath new luftre give :
This
OLYMPICK ODES. O d e V. 169
This Pfaumis, whom on Alpheus' fliore
With unabating fpeed
The harnefs'd mules to conqueft bore.
This gift to thee decreed;
Thee, Camarina, whofe well-peopled towers
Thy Pfaumis render'd great in fame.
When to the twelve Olympian powers
He fed with vidims the triumphal flame.
When, the double altars round,
Slaughter'd Bulls beflrew'd the ground;.
When, on five fele<fted days,
Jove furvey'd the lift of praife ;
While along the dully courfe
Pfaumis urg'd his draining horfe.
Or beneath the focial yoke
Made the well-match'd courfers fmoke j
Or around th' Elean goal
Taught his mule-drawn car to roll.
Then did the viftor dedicate his fame
To thee, and bade the herald's voice proclaim
Thy new-ellablifh'd walls, and Acron's lionour'd name..
ANTISTRQPHE.
But now return'd from where the pleaiant feat
Once of Oenomaus and Pelops Hood,
Thee, Civick Pallas, and thy chafte retreat.
He bids me fmg, and fair Oanus' flood.
And
jjo W E S T ' S P O E M S.
And Camarina's fleeping wave.
And thofe fequefter'd lliores.
Through which the thirfty town to lave
Smooth flow the watery flores
Of fifhy Hipparis, profoundeft ftream>
Adown whofe wood-envelop'd tide
The folid pile and lofty beam.
Materials for the future palace, glide*
Thus, by war's rude tempeih torn,
Plung'd in mifery and fcorn.
Once again, with power array 'd,
Camarina lifts her head,
Gayly brightening in the blaze,
Pfaumis, of thy hard-earn'd praife*
Trouble, care, expence, attend
Him who labours to afcend
Where, approaching to the fkies>
Virtue holds the facred prize.
That tempts him to atchieve the dangerous deed t
But, if his well-concerted toils fucceed.
His country's juil applaufe fhall be his glorious meed.
E P O D E.
O Jove ! protedor of mankind !
O cloud-enthi-oned king of gods 1
Who, on the Chronian mount reclin'd.
With honour crown'lt the wide-ftream'd floods
Of Alpheus, and the folemn gloom
Of Ida's cave I to thee I come:
Thy
OLYMPICK ODES. O d e V. 175
Thy fuppliant, to foft Lydian reeds.
Sweet breathing forth my tuneful prayer,
Th^t, grac'd with noble, valiant deeds.
This ftate may prove thy guardian care;
And thou> on vvhofe victorious brow
Olympia bound the facred bough.
Thou whom Neptunian fieeds delight.
With age, content, and quiet crown'd.
Calm may'll thou fmk to endlefs night.
Thy children, praumis> weeping round.
And fmce the gods have given thee fame and wealthy
Join'd with that prime of earthly treafures, healthy
Enjoy the bleflings they to man alTign,
Nor fondly figh for happine£s divine^
THE
172 WEST'S POEMS.
THE SEVENTH OLYMPICK ODE.
This Ode is infcribed .to Diagoras, the fon of Dama-
getus of Rhodes, who in the Seventy-ninth Olym-
piad, obtained the vidlory in the exercife of the csiftus.
This Ode was in fuch efteem among the ancients, that
it was depofited in a temple of Minerva, written in
letters of gold.
ARGUMENT.
THE Poet begins this noble fong of triumph with a
nmile, by which he endeavours to fhew his great
efteem for thofe who obtain the viftory in the Olym-
pick and other games ; as alfo the value of the pre-
fent that he makes them upon that occafion ; a pre-
fent always acceptable, becaufe fame and prrdfe h
that which delights all mortals; wherefore the Mufe,
fays he, is perpetually looking about for proper ob-
jefts to bellow it upon; and feeing the great adlicns
of Diagoras, takes up a refolution of celebrating him,
the Ide of Rhodes his country, and his father Da-
magetus (according to the form obferved by the
herald in proclaiming the conquerors) ; Damagetus,
and confequently Diagoras, being defccnded from
Tlepolemus, who led over a colony of Grecians
from Argos to Rhodes, where he fettled, and ob-
tained the dominion of that ifland. From Tlepole-
mus, therefore, Pindar declares he will deduce his
fong; wliich ke addreffes to all the Rhodians in com-
mon
OLYMPICK ODES. OdbVII. 173
mon with Diagoras, who were defcended from Tlepo-
lemus, or from thofe Grecians that came over with
him ; that is, almolt all the people of Rhodes, who
indeed are as much (if not more) interefted in the
greateft part of this Ode, as Diagoras the conqueror.
Pindar accordingly relates the occafion of Tlepole-
mus's coming to Rhodes, which he tells was in
obedience to an oracle, that commanded him to feek
out that ifland; which, inftead of telling us its
name, Pindar, in a more poetical manner, charac-
terizes by relating of it fome legendary ftories (if I
may fo fpeak) that were peculiar to the iile of
Rhodes ; fuch as the Golden Shower, and the occa-
fion of Apollo's chufmg that iiland for himfelf;
both which ftories he relates at large with fuch a
flame of Poetry as fhews his imagination to have
been extremely heated and elevated with his fub-
jecls. Neither does he feem to cool in the fhort
account that he gives, in the next place, of the
pafiion of Apollo for the Nymph Rhodes, from
whom the ifland received its name, and from whom
were defcended its original inhabitants (whom jull
before the Poet therefore called the fons of Apollo) :
and particularly the three brothers, Camirus, Lindus,
and Jalyfus ; who divided that country into three
kingdoms, and built the three principal cities which
retained their names. In this ifland Tlepolemus
(fays the Poet, returning to the (lory of that hero)
found refl, and a period to all his misfortunes, and
at length grew into fuch efteem with the Rhodians,
that they worfliiped him as a God, appointing
facri-
74
WEST^S POEMS,
facrihces to him, and inftituting games in his honour.
The mention of thofe games naturally brings back
the Poet to Diagoras ; and gives him occafion, from
the two victories obtained by Diagoras in thofe
games, to enumerate all the prizes won by that
famous conqueror in all the games of Greece : after
which enumeration, he begs of Jupiter, in a folema
prayer, to grant Diagoras the love of his country,
and the admiration of all the world, as a reward
for the many virtues for which he and his family
had always been dilHnguillied, and for which their
country had fo often triumphed: and then, as if he
had been a witnefs of the extravagant tranfports of
the Rhodians (to which, not the fellival only occa-
fioned by the triumphal entry of their countryman,
and the glory reile(9:ed upon them by his victories,
•butmuch more the flattering and extraordinary eulo-
giums bellowed upon the whole nation in this Ode,
might have given birth), the Poet on a fudden
changes his hand, and checks their pride by a moral
reflection on the vicifiitude of fortune, with which
he exhorts them to moderation, and fo concludes.
HEROIC STANZAS.
L
A S when a father in the golden vafe,
"^ The pride and glory of his wealthy fliores.
Bent his lov'd daughter's nuptial torch to grace.
The vineyard's purple dews profufely pours ;
6 II. Then
OLYMPICK ODES. O d e VII. 175
IL
Then to his lips the foaming chalice rears,
\^'ith bleffings hallow'd, and aufpicious vows.
And, mingling with the draught tranfporting tears.
On the young bridegroom the rich gift bellows ;
III.
The precious earneil: of eileem fincere.
Of friendly u^|ion and connubial love :
The bridal train the facred pledge revere.
And round the youth in fprightly meafures move.
IV.
He to his home the valued prefent bears.
The grace and ornament of future feafls ;
Where, as his father's bounty he declares.
Wonder fhall feize the gratulating guefts,
V.
Thus on the valiant, on the fvvifr, and flrong,
Caftalia's genuine nedlar I beftow ;
And, peuring forth the Mufe-defcended fong.
Bid to their praifes the rich numbers flow,
VI.
Grateful to them refounds th' harmordck Ode,
The gift of friendfliip and the pledge of fame.
Happy the mortal, whom th' Aonian God
Chears with the mufick of a glorious name !
VII.
The Mufe her piercing glances throws around.
And quick difcovers every worthy deed:
And now fhe wakes the lyre's inchanting found.
Now fills with various Ibains the vocal reed :
VII I. But
i-S V/EST'S POEMS.
VII.
But here each inftrument of fong divine.
The vocal reed and lyre's enchanting firing.
She tunes ; and bids their harmony combine
Thee, and thy Rhodes, Diagoras, to fmg ;
IX.
Thee and thy country, native of the flood.
Which from bright Rhodos draws her honour'dname.
Fair nymph, whofe charms fubdued the Delphic God,
Fair blooming daughter of the Cyprian dame:
X.
To fmg thy triumphs in th' Olympick fand.
Where Alpheus faw thy giant-temples crown'd;
Fam'd Pythia too proclaimed thy conquering hand.
Where fweet Callalia's myftic currents found.
XI.
Nor Damagetus will I pafs unfung.
Thy fire, the friend of Juftice and of Truth;
From noble anceflors whofe lineage fprung.
The chiefs who led to Rhodes the Argive youth.
XII.
There near to Afia's wide-extended ftrand.
Where jutting Embolus the waves divides.
In three divifions they poITefs'd the land,
Enthron'd amid the hoarfe-refounding tides.
XIII.
To their defcendants will I tune my lyre.
The offspring of Alcides bold and flrong;
And from Tlepolemus, their common fire.
Deduce the national hiflorick fong,
XIV. TIepole-
OLYMPICK ODES. Ode VII. 177
XIV.
Tlepolemus of great Alcides came.
The fruits of fair Aftydameia's love,
Jove-born Amyntor got the Argive dame :
So either lineage is deriv'd from Jove.
XV.
But wrapt in error is the human mind.
And human blifs is ever infecure :
Know we what fortune yet remains behind ?
Know we how long the prefent Ihali endure ?
XVI,
For lo ! the * founder of the Rhodian flate.
Who from Saturnian Jove his being drew.
While his fell bofom fweil'd with vengeful hate.
The bailard- brother of Alcmena flew.
XVII.
With his rude mace, in fair Tiryutha's walls,
Tlepolemus inflids the horrid wound :
Ev'n at his mother's door Licymnius falls.
Yet warm from her embrace, and bites the ground,
XVIII.
Palfion may oft the wifefl heart farprize:
Confcious and trembling for the murderous deed ,
To Delphi's Oracle the hero flies.
Solicitous to learn what Heaven decreed.
♦ Tlepolemus.
Vol. LVII, N XTX. Him
178 W E S T ' S P O E M S.
XIX.
Him bright-hair 'd Phoebus from his odorous fane.
Bade iet his flying fails from Lerna's Ihore,
And, in the bofom of the Eaftern Main,
That fea-girt region haften to explore;
XX.
That blifsful iiland, where a vvonderous cloud
Once rain'd, at Jove's command, a golden Ihower;
What time, alfilled by the Lemnian God,
The ICing of Heaven brought forth the Virgin Power,
XXI.
By Vulcan's art the father's teeming head
Was open'd wide, and forth impetuous fprung.
And Ihouted fierce and loud, the warrior Maid :
Old Mother Earth and Heaven affrighted rung.
XXIL
Then Hyperion's fon, pure fount of day.
Did to his children the flrange tale reveal :
He warn'd them llrait the facrifice to flay.
And worfhip the young Power with earlieil zeal.
XXIII.
So would they footh the mighty father's mind,
Pleas'd with. the honours to his daughter paid;
And fo propitious ever would they find
Minerva, warlike, formidable maid.
XXIV.
On (laid precaution, vigilant and wife.
True virtue and true happinefs depend;
But oft Oblivion's darkening clouds arife.
And from the deflin'd fcope our purpofe bend.
XXV. The
O L Y M P I C K ODES. Ode VII. 179
XXV.
The Rhodians, mindful of their fire's beheft.
Strait in the citadel an altar rear'd;
But with imperfedl rites the power addrefs'd.
And without tire their facrifice prepar'd.
XXVI.
Yet Jove approving o'er th' aifembly fpread
A yellow cloud, that dropp'd with golden dews ;
While in their opening hearts the blue-ey'd maid
Deign'd her celeilial fcience to infufe.
XXVII.
Thence in all arts the fons of Rhodes excel.
Though bell their forming hands the chiffel guide ;
This in each ftreet the breathing marbles tell.
The danger's wonder, and the city's pride.
XXVIII.
Great praife the works of Rhodian artifts find.
Yet to their heavenly millrefs much they owe ;
Since art and learning cultivate the mind.
And make the feeds of genius quicker grow.
XXIX.
Some fay, that when by lot th' immortal gods
With Jove thefe earthly regions did divide.
All undifcover'd lay Phcebean Rhodes,
Whelm'd deep beneath the fait Carpathian tide;
XXX.
That, abfent on his courfe, the God of Day
By all the heavenly fynod was forgot.
Who, his inceffant labours to repay.
Nor land nor fea to Phoebus did allot;
N 2 XXXI. That
i8o W E S T ' S P O E M S.
XXXI.
That Jove reminded would again renew
Th' unjull partition, but the God deny'd;
And faid, beneath yon hoary furge I view
An ille emerging through the briny tide :
XXXII.
A region pregnant with the fertile feed
Of plants, and herbs, and fruits, and foodful grain;
Each verdant hill unnumber'd flocks fhall feed;
Unnumber'd men pofTefs each flowery plain.
XXXIII.
Then flrait to Lachefis he gave command.
Who binds in golden cauls her jetty hair;
He bade the fatal filler llretch her hand.
And by the Stygian rivers bade her fvvear ;
XXXIV.
Swear to confirm the Thunderer's decree.
Which to his rule that fruitful ifland gave.
When from the ouzy bottom of the fea
Her head fhe rear'd above the Lycian wave.
XXXV.
The fatal fifter fwore, nor fwore in vain ;
Nor did the tongue of Delphi's Prophet err;
Up-fprung the blooming ifland through the main ;
And Jove on Phoebus did the boon confer.
XXXVI.
In this fam'd iile, the radiant fire of light.
The god whofe reins the fiery fleeds obey.
Fair Rhodes faw, and, kindling at the fight,
Seiz'd, and by force enjoy 'd the beauteous prey:
XXXVII. From
OLYMPICK ODES. O d e VII. i8i
XXXVII.
From whofe divine embraces fprung a race
Of mortals, wifeft of all human-kind ;
Seven fens, endow'd with every noble grace;
The noble graces of a fapient mind.
XXXVIII.
Of thefe lalyfus and Lindus came.
Who with Camirus fhar'd the Rhodian lands ;
Apart they reign'd, and facred to his name
Apart each brother's royal city frands.
XXXIX.
Here a fecure retreat from all his woes
Allydameia's haplefs offspring found ;
Here, like a God in undiilurb'd repofe.
And like a God -.vith heavenly honours crown'd,
XL.
His priefis and blazing altars he furveys,
And hecatombs, that feed the odorous flame ;
With games, memorial of his deathlefs praife ;
Where twice, Diagoras, unmatch'd in fame,
XLI.
Twice on thy head the livid poplar fhone,
Mix'd with the darkfome pine, that binds the brows
Of Ifthmian vidors, and the Ncmean crown.
And every palm that Attica beitovv's.
XLII.
Diagoras th' Arcadian vafe obtain 'd;
Argos to him adjudg'd her brazen fnield ;
His mighty hands the Theban tripod gain'd.
And bore the prize from each Boeotian field.
N 3 XLIII. Six
j835 w s s t * s f o e m s.
XLIII.
Six times in rough ^gina he prevail'd ;
As oft Pellene's robe of honour won;
And ftill at Megara in vain aiTaird,
He with his name hath iill'd the vigor's fione,
XLiV.
O thou, who, high on Atabyrius thron'd>
Seeft from his fummits all this happy ifle.
By thy protection be my labours crown'd;
Vouchfaf.', Saturnius, on my verfe to fmile 1
XLV.
And grant to him, whofe virtue is my theme,
Whofe valiant heart th' Olympick wreaths proclaim;,
At home his country's favour and eHeem,
Abroad, eternal, univerfal fame.
XLVL
for well to thee Diagoras is known;
Ne'er to injuftice have his paths declin'd ;
Nor from his fires degenerates the fon ;
Whofe precepts and examples f^re his mind.
XLVII.
Then from obfcurity preferve a race.
Who to their country joy and glory give ;
Their country, that in them views every grace.
Which "from tlieir great forefathers they receive.
XLVIII.
Yet as the gales of Fortune various blow,.
To-day tempeftuous, and to-morrow fair.
Due bounds, ye Rhodians, let your tranfports know;
Perhaps to-morrow comes a fiorm of care.
T H E
O L Y M P I C K ODES. O d e XT. 183
THE ELEVENTH OLYMPICK ODE.
This Ode is infcribed to Agefidamus of Locris, who,
in the Seventy -fourth Olympiad, obtained the vic-
tory in the exercife of the Ca?ftus, and in the clafs
of boys.
The preceding Ode in the original is infcribed to the
fame perfon ; and in that we learn, that Pindar had
for a long time promifed Agefidamus an Ode upon
his victory, which he at length paid him, acknow-
ledging himfelf to blame for having been fo long in
his debt. To make him fome amends for having
delayed payment fo long, he fent htm by v/ay of in-
terell together wirh the preceding Ode, which is of
fome length, the fhort one that is here tran{lat.ed,
and which in the Greek title is for that reafon Hyled
ToV^ or intereil.
ARGUMENT.
THE Poet, by two comparifons, with which he be-
gins his Ode, infmuates how acceptable to fuccefsful
merit thofe fongs of triumph are, which give ftabi-
litv and duration to their fame: then declaring that
thefe fongs are due to the Olympick Conquerors, he
proceeds to celebrate the viciory of Agefidamus,
and the praifes of the Locrians, his countrymen,
whom he commends for their having been always
reputed a brave, wife, and hofpitabic nation; from
svhence he infmuates, that th?'r virtues b-ing here-
"^ .. ditary
184 W E S T ' S P O E M S.
ditary and innate, there was no more likelihood of
their departing from them, than there was of the
fox and lion's changing their natures.
STROPHE.
nn O wind-bound mariners moft welcome blow
^ The breezy zephyrs through the whiftling
fhrouds :
Moil welcome to the thirily mountains flow
Soft fhowers, the pearly daughters of the clouds ;
And v/hen on virtuous toils the gods bellow
Succefs, moil welcome found mellifluous odes,
Whcfe numbers ratify the voice of Fame,
And to illullrious worth infure a lalling name.
ANTISTROPHE.
Such fame, fuperior to the hoilile dart
Of canker'd envy, Pifa's Chiefs attends.
Fain would my Mufe th' immortal boon impart,
Th' imm.ortal boon which from high Heaven
defcends.
And now infpir'd by Heaven thy valiant heart,
Agefidamus, ftie to Fame commends :
Now adds the ornament of tuneful praife.
And decks thy olive -crown with fweetly-founding lays.
E P O D E.
But while thy bold atchievements I rehearfe.
Thy youthful vidlory in Pifa's fand.
With thee partaking in the friendly verfe
Not unregarded Ihall thy Lccris iland.
Then
OLYMPICK ODES. Ode XL 185
Then haile, ye Mufes, join the choral band
Of felHve youths upon the Locrian plain i
To an unciviliz'd and favage land
Think not I now invite your virgin train.
Where barbarous ignorance and foul djfdain
Of focial Virtue's hofpitable lore
Prompts the unmanner'd and inhuman fwain
To drive the llranger from his churlilh. door.
A nation {hall ye find, renown'd of yore
For martial valour and for worthy deeds ;
Rich in a vaft and unexhaulled ftore
Of innate wifdom, whofe prolific feeds
Spring in each age. So Nature's laws require :
And the great laws of Nature ne'er expire.
Unchang'd the lion's valiant race remains.
And all his father's wiles the youthful fox retainf*
THE
X86 WEST'S POEMS.
THE TWELFTH OLYMPICK ODE.
This Ode is infcribed to Ergoteles the Son of Phi-
lanor of Himera, who, in the Serenty-feventh
Olympiad, gained the prize in the Foot-Race
called Dolichos or the Long Courfe.
ARGUMENT.
Ergoteles was originally of Crete, but being driven
from thence by the fury of a prevailing fadion, he
retired to Himera, a town of Sicily, where he was
honourably received, and admitted to the freedom
of the city ; after which he had the happinefs to
obtain, what the Greeks efteemed the higheft pitch
of glory, the Olympick Crown. Paufanias fays he
gained two Olympick Crowns ; and the fame num-
ber in each of the other three facred Games, the
Pythian, Ifthmian, and Nemean. From thefe re-
markable vicifiitudes of Fortune in the Hfe of
Ergoteles, Pindar takes occafion to addrefs himfelf
to that powerful diredlrefs of all human affairs, im-
ploring her prctedlion for Himera, the adopted
country of Ergoteles. Then, after defcribing in
general terms the univerfal influence of that deity
upon an the anions of mankind, the uncertainty of
events, and the vanity of Hope, ever flucluating in
igno*
OLYMPICK ODES. Ode XIL 187
ignorance and error, he aifigns a reafon for that
vanity, viz. That the gods have not given to mor-
tal men any certain evidence of their future for-
tunes, which often happen to be the very reverfe
both of their hopes and fears. Thus, fays he, it
happened to Ergoteles, whofe very misfortunes
were to him the occalion of happinefs and glory;
fince, had he not been banifhed from his country,
he had probably pafTed his life in obfcurity, and
wafled in domeftick broils and quarrels that ftrength
and adlivity, vv-hich his more peaceful fituation at
Himera enabled him to improve, and employ for
the obtaining the Olympick cro'Aoi.
This Ode, one of the ihorteft, is, at the fame time, in
its order and connecflion, the clearell: and moil com-
pafl of any to be met with in Pindar.
STROPHE.
TNAUGHTER of Eleutherian Jove^
To thee my fupplications I prefer !
For potent Himera my fuit I move ;
Protedrefs fortune, hear !
Thy deity along the pathlefs main
In her wild courfe the rapid vefTel guides ;
Rules the fierce conflidt on th' em.battled plain^
And in deliberating ftate? prefides.
Tofs'd by thy uncertain gale
On the feas of error fail
Human
1^8 WEST'S POEMS.
Human hopes, now mounting high
On the fwe]ling furge of joy ;
Now with unexpedled woe
Sinking to the depths below.
ANTISTROPHE.
For Aire prefage of things to come
None yet on mortals have the gods beftow'd ;
Nor of futurity's impervious gloom
Can wifdom pierce the cloud.
Oft our moft fanguine views th' event deceives, '
And veils in fudden grief the fmiling ray :
Oft, when with woe the mournful bofom heaves.
Caught in a ftorm of anguifh and difmay,
Fafs fome fleeting moments by.
All at once the tempefts fly :
Inilant fliifts the clouded fcene ;
Heaven renews its fmiles ferene ;
And on Joy's untroubled tides
Smooth to port the veflTel glides.
E P O D E.
* Son of Philanor ! in the fecret fliade
Thus had thy fpeed unknown to fame decay 'd ;
Thus, like the f crefled bird of Mars, at home
Engag'd in foul domeilick jars.
And wafted with intefline wars.
Ergoteles. -j- The cock.
Inglorious
OLYMPICK ODES. Ode XII. 189
Inglorious hadil: thoa (pent thy vigorous bloom ;
Had not fedition's civil broils
Expell'd thee from thy native Crete,
And driven thee with more glorious toils
Th* Olympick crown in Pifa's plain to meet.
With olive now, with Pythian laurels grac'd.
And the dark chaplets of the Iilhmian pine.
In Himera's adopted city plac'd.
To all, Ergoteles, thy honours ihine.
And raife her luilre by imparting thine.
THE
E90
WEST'S POEMS.
THE FOURTEENTH OLYMPICK ODE.
This Ode is infcribed to Afophicus, the Son of
Cleodemus of Orchoraenus ; who, in the Sc-
venty-fixth Olympiad, gained the viftory in
the fimple Foot-Race, and in the Clafs of Boys.
A R G U M E N T,
ORCHOMENUS, a city of Boeotia, and the
country of the viftor Afophicus, being under the
proteftion of the Graces, her tutelary deities, to them
Pindar addreffes this Ode ; which was probably
fang in the very temple of thofe goddeffes, at a fa-
crifice offered by Afophicus on occafion of his vic-
tory. The Poet begins this invocation with ftiling
the Graces queens of Orchomenus, and guardians
of the children of Minyas, the iirft king of that
city ; whofe fertile territories, he fays, v/ere by let
affigned to their protection. Then, after defcrib-
ing in general the properties and operations of thefe
deities, both in earth and heaven, he proceeds to
call upon each of them by name to aflifl at the fing-
ing of this Ode ; which was made, he tells them,
. to celebrate the victory of Afophicus, in the glory 1
of which Orchomenus had her ihare. Then addreff- 1
ing himfelf to Echo, a nymph that formerly re-i
fided on the banks of Cephifus, a river of thati
country, '
OL YMPICK ODES. Ode XIV. 191
country, he charges her to repair to the manfion of
Proferpine, and impart to Cleodemus, the father of
Afophicus (who from hence appears to have been
dead at that time) the happy news of his fon's vic-
tory ; and fo concludes.
MONOSTROPHAICK.
STROPHE I.
"XT E powers, o'er all the flowery meadi,
"^ Where deep Cephifus roils his lucid tide.
Allotted to prefide.
And haunt the plains renown'd for beauteous Heeds,
Queens of Orchomenus the fair.
And facred guardians of the ancient line
Of Minyas divine.
Hear, O ye Graces, and regard my prayer !
All that's fvveet and pleafmg here
Mortals from your hands receive :
Splendor ye and fame confer.
Genius, wit, and beauty give.
Nor, without your fhining train.
Ever on th' ethereal plain
In harmonious meafures move
The celeilial choirs above ;
When the figured dance they lead.
Or the neftar'd banquet fpread.
But with thrones immortal grac'd,
■And by Pythian Phcebus plac'd.
Ordering
192 W E S T * S POEMS.
Ordering through the bleft abodes
All the fplendid works of gods.
Sit the fillers in a ring.
Round the golden- fhafted king :
And with reverential love
Worfhiping th* Olympian throne.
The majeftick brow of Jove
With unfading honours crown.
STROPHE II.
Aglaia, graceful virgin, hear !
And thou, Euphrofyne, whofe ear
Delighted liftens to the warbled llrain !
Bright daughters of Olympian Jove,
The bell, the greatefl power above ;
With your illuftrious prefence deign
To grace our choral fong !
Whofe notes to vidory's glad found
In wanton meafures lightly bound.
Thalia, come along !
Come, tuneful maid ! for, lo ! my firing
With meditated fkill prepares
In foftly foothing Lydian airs
Afophicus to fmg;
Afophicus, whofe fpeed by thee fuflain'd
The wreath for his Orchomenus obtain'd.
Go then, fportive Echo, go, -
To the fable dome below,
Proferpine's
OLYMPICK ODES. Ode XIV. 195
Proferpine's black dome, repair.
There to Cleodemus bear
Tidings of immortal fame :
Tell, how in the rapid game
O'er Pifa's vale his fon vidorious fled;
Tell, for thou faw'ft him bear away
The winged honours of the day ;
And deck'd with wreaths of fame his youthful head.
Vol. L VII. O THE
194
WEST'S POEMS,
THE FIRST PYTHIAN ODE.
This Ode is infcribed to Hlero of ^tna, King of
Syracufe, who, in the Twenty-ninth Pythiad,
(which anfwers to the feventy-eighth Olympiad)
gained the vidory in the Chariot-Race.
ARGUMENT.
THE Poet, addreffing himfelf in the firll place to his
harp, launches out immediately into a defcription
of the wonderful effedls produced in heaven by the
inchanting harmony of that divine inftrument, when
played upon by Apollo, and accompanied by the
Mufes ; thefe efFefts, fays he, are to cclellial minds
delight and rapture ; but the contrary to the wicked,
who cannot hear, without horror, this heavenly mu-
lick. Havmg mentioned the wicked, he falls into
an account of the punilhment of Typhoeus, an im-
pious giant; who, having prefumed to defy Jupiter,
was by him call into Tartarus, and then chained
under Mount .^tna, whofe fiery eruptions he afcribes
to this giant, whom he therefore ftyles Vulcanian
Moniler. The defcription of thefe eruptions of
Mount ^tna, he clofes with a fhort prayer to Ju-
piter, who had a temple upon that mountain, and
from thence pafTes to, what indeed is more properly
the fubjefl of this Ode, the Pythian vidlory of Hiero.
This part of the Poem is connefted with what went
before by the means of u£tna, a city built by Hiero,
and
PYTHIAN ODES. Ode I. 195
and named after the moiintain in whofe neighbour-
hood it Hood. Hiero had ordered himfelf to be ftyled
of w^tna by the herald who proclaimed his vidory
in the Pythian Games ; from which glorious begin-
ning, fays Pindar, the happy city prefages to her-
felf all kinds of glory and felicity for the future.
Then addreffing himfelf to Apollo, the patron of
the Pythian Games, he befeeches him to make the
citizens of ^Etna great and happy; all human ex-
cellencies being the gifts of heavei^. To Hiero, in
like manner, he wiihes felicity and profperity for
the future, not to be difturbed by the return or re-
membrance of any part afflidions. The toils
indeed and troubles which Hiero had undergone,
before he and his brother Gelo obtained the fove-
reignty of Syracufe, having been crowned with fuc-
cefs, will doubtlefs, fays Pindar, recur often to his
memory with great delight : and then taking notice
of the condition of Hiero, who, it feems, being at
that time troubled with the ftone, was carried about
in the army in a litter, or chariot, he compares him
to Philoftetes : this hero, having been wounded in
the foot by one of Herciiles's arrows, (laid in Lem-
nos to get cured of his wound ; but it being decreed
by the Fates, that Troy fliould not be taken without
thofe arrows, of which Philocletes had the pof-
feffion, the Greeks fetched him from Lemnos, lame
and wounded as he was, and carried him to the fiege.
As Hiero refembled Philodletes in one point, may he
alfo, adds the Poet, refemble him in another, and re-
O 2 cover
196 WEST'S POEMS.
cover his health by the affiftance of a divinity. Then
addreffing himfelf to Dinomenes, the Ton of Hiero,
whom that prince intended to make king of ^tna, he
enters into an account of the colony, which Hiero had
fettled in that city : the people of this colony being
originally defcended from Sparta, v/ere, at their own
requeft, governed by the laws of that famous com-
monwealth. To tl'iis account Pindar fubjoins a prayer
to Jupiter, imploring him to grant that both the king
and people of.j^tna may, by anfwerable deeds, main-
tain the glory and fplendor of their race ; and that
Hiero, and his fon Dinomenes, taught to govern by
the precepts of his father, maybe able to difpofe their
minds to peace and unity. For this purpofe, conti-
nues he, do thou, O Jupiter, prevent the Carthagini-
ans and the Tufcans from invading Sicily any more,
by recalling to their minds the great lolles they had
lately fuftained from the valour of Hiero and his bro-
thers ; into a more particular detail of whofe courage
and virtue, Pindar infinuates he would gladly enter,
was he not afraid of being too prolix and tedious ; a
fault which is apt to breed in the reader fatiety and
difguft ; and though, continues he, exceffive fame pro-
duces often the fime effeds in envious minds, yet do
not thou, O Hiero ! upon that confederation, omit do-
ing any great or good adion; it being far better to
be envied than to be pitied. With this, and fome pre-
cepts ufeful to all kings in general, and others more
peculiarly adapted to the temple of Hiero, whom, as
he
PYTHIAN ODES. Ode I. 197
he was fomewhat inclined to avarice, he encou-
rages to acls of generofity and munificence, from the
confideration of the fame accruing to the princes of
that character, and the infamy redounding to tyrants,
he concludes ; winding up all with obferving, that
the iirft of all human bleflings confills in being vir-
tuous ; the fecond in being praifed j and that he,
who has the happinefs to enjoy both thefe at the
fame time, is arrived at the highell point of eartlily
felicity.
DECADE I.
TjAIL, golden lyre! whofe heaven-invented firing
-*^ To Phcebus and the black-hair'd Nine belongs ;
Who in fweet chorus round their tuneful king
Mix with thy founding chords their facred fongs.
The dance, gay queen of pleafure, thee attends ;
Thy jocund llrains her liilening feet infpire :
And each melodious tongue its voice fufpends
Till thou, great leader of the heavenly quire.
With wanton art preluding giv'il the fign —
Swells the full concert then with harmony divine.
DECADE II.
Then, of their ftreaming lightnings all difarm'd.
The fmouldering thunderbolts of Jove expire :
Then, by the mufick of thy Numbers charm'd.
The birds' fierce monarch * drops his vengeful ire;
* The eagle.
O 3 Perch'd
J98 W E S T ^ S POEMS.
Perched on the fceptre of th' Olympian king^
The thrilling darts of harmony he feels ;
And indolently hangs his rapid wing.
While gentle fleep his clofmg eyelid feals ;
And o'er his heaving limbs in loofe array
To every balmy gale the ruffling feathers play.
DECADE III.
Ev'n Mars, ftern god of violence and war.
Soothes with thy lulling ftrains his furious bread.
And, driving from his heart each bloody care.
His pointed lance configns to peaceful reft.
Nor lefs enraptur'd each immortal mind
Ov/ns the foft influence of inchanting fong.
When, in melodious fymphony combin'd.
Thy fon, Latona, and the tuneful throng
Of Mufes, ikill'd in wifdom's deepeft lore.
The fubtle powers of verfe and harmony explore.,
DECADE IV.
But they, on earth, or the devouring main.
Whom righteous Jove with deteftation views.
With envious horror hear the heavenly ftrain,
ExiPd from praife, from virtue, and the Mufe»
Such is Typhosus, impious foe of gods,
Whofe hundred -headed form Cilicia's cave
Once fofter'd in her infamous abodes ;
Till daring with prefumptuous arms to brave
The might of thundering Jove, fubdued he fell>
riung'd in the horrid dungeons of profoundeft hell.
DECADE
PYTHIAN ODES. Ode I. 199
DECADE V.
Now under fulphurous Cuma's fea-bound coall.
And vaft Sicilia lies his fliaggy breaft ;
' By fnowy ^tna, nurfe of endlefs froil.
The pillar'd prop of heaven, for ever prefs'd :
Forth from whofe nitrous caverns ilTuing rife
Pure liquid fountains of tempeftuous fire.
And veil in ruddy mills the noon-day ikies.
While wrapt in fmoke the eddying flames afpire.
Or gleaming through the night vv^ith hideous roar
Far o'er the reddening main huge rocky fragments pour.
DECADE YL
But he, Vulcanian Monfter, to the clouds
The fierceit, hottell inundations throws.
While, with the burthen of incumbent woods
And ^Etna's gloomy cliffs o'erwhelm'd, he glows.
There on his flinty bed out-ftretch'd he lies,
Whofe pointed rock his tofTmg carcafe wounds :
There with difmay he llrikes beholding eyes.
Or frights the diilant ear with horrid founds.
O fave us from thy wrath, Sicilian Jove !
Thou, that here reign'il, ador'd in Etna's facred grove I
DECADE VH.
yEtna, fair forehead of this fruitful land !
Whofe borrow'd name adorns the royal town.
Raised by illuftrious Hiero's generous hand.
And render'd glorious with his high renown-
O 4 By
k
200 WEST'S POEMS.
By Pythian heralds were her praifes fung.
When Hiero triumph'd in the dully courfe.
When fweet Caftalio with applaufes rung.
And glorious laurels crown'd the conquering horfe.
The happy city for her future days
Prefages hence increafe of viftory and praife.
DECADE VIII.
Thus when the mariners to profperous winds.
The port forfaking, fpread the fvvelling fails ;
The fair departure chears their jocund minds
With pleafmg hopes of favourable gales.
While o'er the dangerous defarts of the main.
To their lov'd country they purfue their way.
Ev'n fo, Apollo, thou, whom Lycia's plain.
Whom Delus, and Caflalia's fprings obey,
Thefe hopes regard, and Etna's glory raife
With valiant fons, triumphant fteeds, and heavenly lays !
DECADE IX.
For human virtue from the gods proceeds ;
They the wife mind beilow'd, and fmooth'd the
tongue
With elocution, and for mighty deeds
The nervous arm with manly vigour ftrung.
All thefe are Hiero's : thefe to rival lays
Call forth the Bard : arife then, Mufe, and fpeed
To this contention ; llrive in Hiero's praife.
Nor fear thy efforts ihall his worth exceed ;
Within the lines of truth fecure to throw.
Thy dart ihall Hill furpafs each vain attempting foe.
DECADE
PYTHIAN ODES. O d e I. zcj
DECADE X.
So may fucceeding ages, as they roll.
Great Hiero ftill in wealth and blifs maintain*
And, joyous health recalling, on his foul
Oblivion pour of life-confuming pain.
Yet may thy memory with fweet delight
The various dangers and the toils recount.
Which in intefline wars and bloody fight
Thy patient virtue, Hiero, did furmount ;
What time, by heaven above all Grecians crown'd.
The prize of fovereign fway with thee thy * brother
found.
DECADE XL
Then like the fon of Psan didft thou war,
Smit with the arrows of a fore difeafe;
While, as along ilow rolls thy fickly car.
Love and amaze the haughtieft bofoms feize.
In Lemnos pining with th' envenom'd wound
The fon of Psan, Philocletes, lay :
There, after tedious queit, the heroes found.
And bore the lirhping archer thence away ;
By whom fell Priam's towers (fo fate ordain'd)
And the long harrafs'd Greeks their wiih'd repofe
obtain 'd.
DECADE XII.
May Hiero too, like Pecan's fon, receive
Recover 'd vigour from celeitial hands !
And may the healing god proceed to give
The power to gain whate'er his wiih demands.
* Gelo.
But
203 W E S T ' S P O E M S.
But now, O Mufe, addrefs thy founding lays
To young Dinomenes, his virtuous heir.
Sing to Dinomenes, his father's praife ;
His father's praife ihall glad his filial ear.
For him hereafter ihalt thou touch the firing.
And chant in friendly flrains fair Etna's future king,
DECADE XIII.
Hiero for him th' illuftrious city rear'd,
And fiU'd with fons of Greece her ftately towers.
Where, by the free-born citizen rever'd.
The Spartan laws exert their virtuous powers.
For by the flatutes, which their fathers gave.
Still mull: the reitive Dorian youth be led;
Who dwelling once on cold Eurotas' wave.
Where proud Taygetus exalts his head.
From the great flock of Hercules divine
And warlike Pamphilus deriv'd their noble line.
DECADE XIV.
Thefe, from ThefTalian Pindus rufhing down.
The walls of fam'd Amycla; once pofTefs'd,
And, rich in fortune's gifts and high renown.
Dwelt near the twins of Leda, while they prefs'd
Their milky courfers, and the paflures o'er
Of neighbouring Argos rang'd, in arms fupreme.
To king and people on the flowery fhore
Of lucid Amena, Sicilian flream.
Grant the like fortune, Jove, with like defert
The fplendor of their race and glory to allert.
DECADE
I
PYTHIAN ODES. O d e I. 203
DECADE XV.
And do thou aid Sicilia's hoary Lord
To form and rule his fon's obedient mind;
And ftill in golden chains of fweet accord.
And mutual peace the friendly people bind.
Then grant, O Son of Saturn, grant my prayer !
The bold Phoenician on his ihore detain ;
And may the hardy Tufcan never dare
To vex with clamorous war Sicilia's main;
Remembering Hiero, how on Cuma's coaft
Wreck'd by his fiormy arms their groaning fleets were
loll.
DECADE XVI.
What terrors 1 what deftrudlion them ailail'd !
Hurl'd from their riven decks what numbers dy'd *
When o'er their might Sicilia's Chief prevail'd.
Their youth o'erwhelming in the foamy tide;
Greece from impending fervitude to fave.
Thy favour, glorious Athens ! to acquire.
Would I record the Salaminian wave
Fam'd in thy triumphs : and my tuneful lyre
To Sparta's fons with fweeteft praife Ihould tell.
Beneath Cithasron's Ihade what Medifh archers fell.
DECADE XVIL
But on fair Himera's wide- water 'd ihores
Thy fons, Dinomenes, my lyre demand.
To grace their virtues with the various ftores
Of facred verfe, and fing th' jlluHrious band
Of
204 W E S T ' S P O E M S.
Of valiant brothers, who from Carthage won
The glorious meed of conqueft, deathlefs praife.
A pleafmg theme ! but cenfure's dreaded frown
Compels me to contradl my fpreading lays.
In verfe concifenefs pleafes every gueft.
While each impatient blames and loaths a tedious feafl.
DECADE XVIIL
Nor lefs diflaltful is excefTive fame
To the four palate of the envious mind;
Who hears with grief his neighbour's goodly name^
And hates the fortune that he ne'er Ihall find.
Yet in thy virtue, Hiero, perfevere !
Since to be envied is a nobler fate
Than to be pitied : Let ftrid j ulUce lleer
With equitable hand the helm of ftate.
And arm thy tongue with truth : O King, beware
Of every Hep 1 a Prince can never lightly err.
DECADE XIX.
O'er many nations art thou fet, to deal
The goods of Fortune with impartial hand i
And, ever watchful of the public weal,
Unnumber'd witnelTes around thee Hand.
Then, would thy virtuous ear for ever feall
On the fweet melody of well-earn'd fame.
In generous purpofes confirm thy brealt.
Nor dread expences that will grace thy name;
But, fcorning fordid and unprincely gain.
Spread all thy bounteous fails, and launch into the Main.
DECADE
...J
P y T H I A N O D E S. O d e I. 205
DECADE XX.
When in the mouldering urn the monarch lies.
His fame in lively characters remains.
Or grav'd in monumental hiilories.
Or deck'd and painted in Aonian ftrains.
Thus freih, and fragrant, and immortal, blooms
The virtue, Croefus, of thy gentle mind :
While fate to infamy and hatred dooms
Sicilia's tyrant, fcorn of human kind;
Whofe ruthlefs bofom fvvell'd with cruel pride.
When in his brazen bull the broiling wretches dy'd.
DECADE XXI.
Him therefore nor in fweet fociety
The generous youth converfmg ever name;
Nor with the harp's delightful melody
Mingle his odious inharmonious fame.
The firft, the greateft blifs on man conferr'd
Is, in the ads of virtue to excel ;
The fecond, to obtain their high reward.
The foul-exalting praife of doing well.
Who both thefe lots attains, is blefs'd indeed,
5ince Fortune here below can give no richer meed.
THE
:2o6 WEST'S POEMS.
THE FIRST NEMEAN ODE.
This Ode Is infcribed to Chromlus of ^tna (a city
of Sicily) who gained the vidlory in the Chariot-
Race, in the Nemean Games*
ARGUMENT.
I^'ROM the praifes of Ortygia (an iiland near Sicily,
and part of the city of Syracufe, to which it was
joined by a bridge) Pindar pafTes to the fubjedl or
cccafion of this Ode, viz. the Vidory obtained by
Chromius in the Nemean Games ; which, as it was
-the firil of that kind gained by him, the Poet ftyles
the balls of his future fame, laid by the co-operation
of the Gods, who affiiled and feconded his divine
virtues; and, adds he, if Fortune continues to be
•favourable, he may arrive at the highell fummit of
glory : by which is meant chiefly, though not folely,
the gaining more prizes in the Great or Sacred Games
(particularly the Olympick), where the Mufes con-
ftantly attend to celebrate and record the Conquerors.
From thence, after a fhort digreffion to the general
praife of Sicily, he comes to an enumeration of the
particular virtues of Chromius, viz, his hofpitality,
liberality, prudence in council, and courage in war.
Then, returning to the Nemean Viftory, he takes oc-
cafion from fo aufpicious a beginning, to promife
Chromius a large increafe of glory, in like manner
as
NEMEAN ODES. Ode I. 207
ns Tirefias, the famous Poet and Prophet of Thebes
(the country of Pindar) upon viewing the firll exploit
of Hercules, which was killing in his cradle the
two ferpents fent by Juno to devour him, foretold
;' the fubfequent atchievements of that hero ; and the
■ great reward he ftiould receive for all his labours,
by being admitted into the number of the Gods, and
married to Hebe; with which ftory he concludes
the Ode.
STROPHE I.
SI S T E R of Delos ! pure abode
Of Virgin Cynthia, Goddefs of the Chace !
In whofe receffes refts th' emerging flood
Of Alpheus, breathing from his amorous race !
Divine Ortygia ! to thy name
The Mufe preluding tunes her firings.
Pleas 'd with the fweet preamble of thy fame.
To ufher in the verfe, that fmgs
Thy triumphs, Chromius ; while Sicilian Jove
Hears with delight through Etna's founding grove
The gratulations of the hymning choir.
Whom thy vidorious carr and Nemea's palms infpire.
ANTISTROPHE I.
The bafis of his future praife
Aflifted by the Gods hath Chromius laid ;
And to its height the towering pile may raife.
If Fortune lends her favourable aid :
AiTur'd
2o8 W E S T ' S P O E M S.
AfTur'd that all th' Aonian train
Their wonted friendfhip will afford.
Who with delight frequent the lifted plain.
The toils of Virtue to record.
Mean time around this ifle, harmonious Mufe I
The brighteft beams of fliining verfe diifufe :
This fruitful ifland, with whole flowery pride
Heaven's awful King endow'd great Pluto's beauteous
bride.
E P O D E I.
Sicilia with tranfcendent plenty crown'd
Jove to Proferpina coniign'd ;
Then with a nod his folemn promife bounds
Still farther to enrich her fertile fliores
With peopled cities, ftately towers.
And fons in arts and arms refin'd ;
Skill'd to the dreadful works of war
The thundering fteed to train ;
Or mounted on the whirling carr
Olympia's all-priz'd olive to obtain.—
Abundant is my theme ; nor need I wrong
The fair occafion with a flattering fong.
STROPHE II.
To Chromius no unwelcome gueft
I come, high founding my Dircasan chord;
Who for his Poet hath prepar'd the feaft.
And fpread with luxury his friendly board,
Foi
NEMEAN ODES. Ode f.
209
fFor never from his generous gate
Unentertain'd the ftranger flies.
While Envy's fcorching flame, that blafts the great,
Quench'd with his flowing bounty, dies.
Eut Envy ill becomes the human mind ;
Since various parts to various men aflign'd
All to perfection and to praife will lead.
Would each thofe paths purfue, which Nature bids him
tread.
A N T I S T R O P H E II.
In adlion thus heroick might.
In council fliines the mind fagacious, wife.
Which to the future calls her piercing fight.
And {qcs the train of confequences rife.
With either talent Chromius bleil
Suppreifes not his active powers.
I hate the mifer, whofe unfocial breafl
Locks from the world his ufelefs fliores.
Wealth by the bounteous only is enjoy 'd,
Whofe treafures in diifufive good employ 'd
The rich returns of fame and friends procure ;
And 'gainfh a fad reverfe, a fafe retreat infure.
E P O D E II.
Thy early virtues, Chromius, deck'd with praife.
And thefe firfl:-fruits of Fame infpire
The Mufe to promife for thy future days
A large increafe of merit and renown.
So when of old Jove's mighty fon.
Worthy his great immortal fire, ;^
Vol. LVII. P Forth
210 . WEST'S POEMS.
Forth from Alcmena's teeming bed
With his twin-brother came.
Safe through life's painful entrance led
To view the dazzling Sun's reviving flame,
Th' imperial cradle Juno quick furvey'd.
Where llept the twins in faffron bands array'd.
STROPHE III.
Then, glowing with immortal rage.
The gold-enthroiied Emprefs of the Gods
Her eager thirft of vengeance to afluage.
Strait to her hated rival's curs'd abodes
Bade her vindiftive ferpents hafte.
They through the opening valves with fpeed
On to the chamber's deep receffes paft.
To perpetrate their murderous deed :
And now in knotty mazes to infold
Their deftin'd prey, on curling fpires they roll'd.
His dauntlefs brow when young Alcides reared.
And for their firft attempt his infant arms prepared.
ANTISTROPHE III.
Faft by the azure necks he held
And grip'd in either hand his fcaly foes;
Till from their horrid carcafTes expeli'd.
At length the poifonous foul unwilling flows.
Mean time intolerable dread
Congeal'd each female's curdling blood,
AH who, attendant on the genial bed.
Around the languid mother ftood.
She
NEMEAN ODES. Ode I. 211
She with diftrafting fear and anguifh flung.
Forth from her fickly couch impatient fprung ;
Her cumberous robe regardlefs oft fhe threw.
And to proted her child with fondeil ardour flew.
E P O D E III.
But, with her Ihrill, diflrefsful cries alarm'd.
In ruih'd each bold Cadmean Lord,
In brafs refulgent, as to battle arm'd ;
With them Amphitryon, whofe tumultuous breafc
A croud of various cares infefl :
High brandifliing his gleaming f.vord
With eager, anxious Hep he came ;
A wound fo near his heart
Shook with diimay his inmoll frame.
And rouz'd the acUve fpirits in every part.
To our os^Ti forrows ferious heed we give ;
But for another's woe foon ceafe to grieve.
STROPHE IV.
Amaz'd the trembling father flood.
While doubtful pieafure, mix'd wdth wild furprlze.
Drove from his troubled heart the vital flood :
His fon's Hupendous deed with wondering eye.-
He view'd, and how the gracious will
Of Heaven to joy had chang'd his fear
And falfify'd the meffengers of ill.
Then flrait he calls th' unerring feer.
Divine Tirefias, whofe prophetick tongue
Jove's facred mandates from the Tripod fung ;
Who then to all th' attentive throng explain'd
What fate th' immortal Gods for Hercules ordain'd.
?2 A XT I-
212 WEST'S POEMS.
ANTISTROPHE IV.
■\^'hat fell defpoilers of the land
The Prophet told, what monfters of the Main
Should feel the vengeance of his righteous hand:
What favage, proud, pernicious tyrant llain
To Hercules Ihould bow his head,
Hurl'd from his arbitrary throne,
Whofe glittering pomp his curs'd ambition fed.
And made indignant nations groan.
Laft, when the giant fons of earth fhall dare
To wage againft the gods rebellious war,
Pierc'd by his rapid fhafts on Phlegra's plain
With duft their radiant locks the haughty foe fliall
flain.
E P O D E IV.
Then fhall his generous toils for ever ceafe.
With fame, with endlefs life repaid ;
With pure tranquillity and heavenly peace :
Then led in triumph to his ftarry dome.
To grace his fpoufal bed Ihall come.
In Beauty's glowing bloom array 'd.
Immortal Hebe, ever young.
In Jove's auguft abodes
Then fliall he hear the bridal fong ;
Then, in the bleft fociety of Gods,
The nuptial banquet fhare, and, rapt in praife
And wonder, round the glittering manfion gaze.
THE
NEMEAN ODES. Ode XI. 215
THE ELEVENTH NEMEAN ODE.
This Ode is infcribed to Ariilagoras, upon occafion of
his entering on his office of Prefident or Governor
of the ifland of Tenedos ; fo that, although it is
placed among the Nemean Odes, it has no fort of
relation to thofe games, and is indeed properly an
Inauguration-Ode, compofed to be fung by a Chorus
at the Sacrifices and the Feaft made by Ariilagoras
and his collegues, in the Town-hall, at the time of
their being invefled with the Magiltracy, as is evi-
dent fi'om many expreflions in the iiril Strophe and
Antiilrophe.
ARGUMENT.
Pindar opens this Ode with an invocation to Vefta (the
Goddefs who prefided over the Courts of Juftice, and
whofe ftatue and altar were for that reafon placed in
the Town-halls, or Prytan^ums, as the Greeks
called them) ; befeeching her to receive favourably
Ariilagoras and his collegues, who were then coming
to offer facrifices to her, upon their entering on their
office of Prytans or Magiilrates of Tenedos ; which
office continuing for a year, he begs the Goddefs to
take Ariilagoras under her protection during that
time, and to conducft him to the end of it
without trouble or difgrace. From Ariilagoras Pin-
dar turns himfelf, in the next place, to his father
Arcefilasj whom he pronounces happ\-, as well upon
P 3 account
214
WEST'S POEMS.
account of his fon's merit and honour, as upon his
own great endowments, and good fortune ; fuch as
beauty, llrength, courage, riches, and glory refult-
ing from his many viilories in die games. But, left
he Ihould be too much puiFed-up with thefe praifes,
he reminds him at the lame time ot his mortality,
and tells him that his cloathing of ilelli is perilhable,
:ind that he mull ere long be cloathed witli eartli, the
end of all things ; and yet, continues he, it is but
jullice to praile and celebrate the worthy and deferv-
ing, who from good citizens ought to receive all
kinds of honour and commendation; as Ariftagoras,
for inilance, who hath rendered both himfelf and
his country illuftrious by the many vidories he hatli
obtained, to the number of fixteen, over the neigh-
bouring youth, in the games exhibited in and about
his own country. From whence, fays the Poet, I
conclude he would have come off vidorious c\en in
tlie Pythian and Olympick games, had he not been
reib-ained from engaging in thofe fimous lifts by the
too timid and cautious love of his pai^ents ; upon
which he falls into a moral refledion upon the va-
nity of men's hopes and fears, by tlie former of
wliich they are oftentimes excited to attempts beyond
their ftrengtli, wliich accordingly iftue in their dif-
grace ; as, on tlie other hand, they are frequently
reftrained by unreafonable and ill-grounded fears,
from enterprizes, in wliich they would, in all pro-
bability, have come off" with honour. Tiiis reflec-
ticn he applies to Ariilagoras, by faying it was very
eafy
NEMEAN ODES. Ode XI. 215.
cafy to forefee what faccefb he was like to meet with,
who both by father and mother was defccndcd from
a long train of great and valiant men. But here
again, with a very artful turn of flattery to his father
Arcefilas, whom he had before reprefented as ftrong
and valiant, and famous for his victories in the
games, he obferves, that every generation, even of a
great and glorious family, is not equally illuftrious,
any more than the fields and trees are every year
equal!/ fruitful; that the gods had not given mortals
any certain tokens, by which they might foreknow
V. hen the rich years of virtue fhould fucceed ; whence
it comes to pafs that men, oat of felf-conceit and
prefumption, are perpetually laying fchemes, and
forming enterprizes, without previoufly confulting
Prudence or Wifdom, whofe i>reams, fays he, lye
remote, and out of the common road. From all
which he infers, that it is better to moderate our
defires, and fet bounds to our avarice and ambition ;
Viith v.hich moral precept he concludes the Ode.
STROPHE I.
TAAUGHTERof Rhea ! thou, whofe holy fire
'^ Before the awful feat of Juilice flames !
Sifler of Heaven's Almighty Sire !
Sifter of Juno, who co-equal claims
With Jove to fhare the empire of the gods !
O \'irgin Vefla ! To thy dread abodes,
Lo ! Ariftagoras direfts his pace !
Receive, and near thy facred fcepter place
P 4 W.m,
2i6 WEST'S POEMS.
Him, and his collegues, who with honeft zeal
O'er Tenedos prefide, and guard the publick weaL
ANT I STROPHE I.
And lo ! with frequent offerings they adore
Thee, iirft invok'd in every folemn prayer !
To thee unmix'd libations pour.
And fill with odorous fumes the fragrant air.
Around in fellive fongs the hymning choir
Mix the melodious voice and founding lyre.
While ftill, prolonged with hofpitable love.
Are folemniz'd the rites of Genial jove :
Then guard him, Vefta, through his long career.
And let him clofe in joy his minifterial year.
E P O D E I.
But hail, Arcefilas ! all hail
To thee ! blefs'd father of a fon fo great !
Thou, whom on Fortune's higheft fcale
The favourable hand of Heaven hath fet.
Thy manly form with beauty hath refin'd.
And match'd that beauty with a valiant mind.
Yet let not man too much prefume.
Though grac'd with Beauty's faireft bloom ;
Though for fuperior Itrength renown'd ;
Though with triumphal chaplets crown'd :
Let him remember, that in flelh array 'd
Soon ihall he fee that mortal veftment fade ;
Till lall imprifon'd in the mouldering urn
To earth, the end of all things, he return.
STRO^
NEMEAN ODES. Ode XL 217
STROPHE II.
Yet fhould the worthy from the publick tongue
Receive their recompence of virtuous praife ;
By every zealous patriot fung.
And deck'd with every flower of heavenly lays.
Such retribution in return for fame.
Such, Ariftagoras, thy virtues claim ;
Claim from thy country, on whofe glorious brows
The wrelller's chaplet ftill unfaded blows ;
Mix'd with the great PancratiafHck crown.
Which from the neighbouring youth thy early valour
won.
A N T I S T R O P H E II.
And (but his timid parents' cautious love,
Diftrufting ever his too forward hand.
Forbade their tender fon to prove
The toils of Pythia' or Olympia's fand)
Now by the gods I fwear, his valorous might
Had 'fcap'd victorious in each bloody fight:
And from Caftalia, or where dark with ihade
The Mount of Saturn rears its olive-head.
Great and illultrious home had he return'd;
While by his fame eclips'd his vanquifli'd foes had
mourn'd.
E P O D E II.
Then his triumphal treffes bound
With the dark verdure of th' Olympick grove.
With joyous banquets had he crown'd
The great Quinquennial Feftival of Jovej
And
2ig W E S T'S P O E M S.
And chear'd the folemn pomp with choral lays.
Sweet tribute, which the Mufe to Virtue pays»
But, fuch is man's prepofterous fate I
Now with o'er-weening pride elate
Too far he aims his ihaft to throw.
And ftraining burfts his feeble bow.
Now pufiUanimous, deprefs'd with fear.
He checks his virtue in the mid-career ;
And of his ftrength dillruftful coward flies
The conteft, though impower'd to gain the prize.
STROPHE III.
But who could err in prophecying good
Of him, whofe undegenerating breaft
Swells with a tide of Spartan blood.
From fire to fire in long fuccefRon trac'd
Up to Pifander ; who in days of yore
From old Amycl^ to the Lefbian Ihore
And Tenedos, coUegued in high command
With great Orelles, led th' ^olian band ?
Nor was his mother's race lefs firong and brave.
Sprung from a flock that grew on fair Ifmenus' wave.
ANTISTROPHE III.
Though for long intervals obfcur'd, again
Oft-times the feeds of lineal worth appear.
For neither can the furrow'd plain
Full harvefts yield with each returning year:
Nor in each period will the pregnant bloom
Invefl the fmiling tree with rich perfume.
So,
NEMEAN ODES, Ode XL 2if^
So, barren often and inglorious pafs
The generations of a noble race;
While Nature's vigour, working at the root.
In after-ages fvvells, and blofToms into fruit.
E P O D E IIL
Nor hath Jove given us to foreknow
When the rich years of virtue fhall fucceed ;.
Yet bold and daring on we go.
Contriving fchemes of many a mighty deed.
While Hope, fondinm.ate of the human mindj
And felf-opinion, adtive, rafh, and blind.
Hold up a faife illufive ray.
That leads our dazzled feet ailray
Far from the fprings, where calm and flow
The fecret ftreams of vvifdom flow.
Hence ftiould we learn our ardour to reftrain :
And limit to due bounds the thiril of gain.
To rage and madnefs oft that paflion turns.
Which with forbidden flames defpairing burns*
THE
220 W E S T * S P O E M S.
THE SECOND ISTHMIAN ODE.
This Ode was written upon occafion of a vidlory ob-
tained in the Chariot-Race by Xenocrates of Agri-
gentum in the Ifthmian games ; it is however ad-
drefled not to Xenocrates himfelf, but to his fon
Thrafybulus ; from whence, and from Pindar's
always fpeaking of Xenocrates in the perfed tenfe,
it is moil probable it was written after the death of
Xenocrates ; and for this reafon it has by fome be^
reckoned among the ^p^yoi or Elegies of Pindar.
THE introduction contains a fort of an apology for a
Poet's taking money for his compofitions ; a thing,
fays Pindar, not praftifed formerly by the fervants
of the Mufes, who drew their infpiration from love
alone, and wrote only from the heart : but as the
world is grown interefted, fo are the Poets become
mercenary; obferving the truth of that famous
faying of Arillodemus the Spartan, <* Money makes
^ *' the man:" a truth, he fays, which he himfelf
experienced, having with his riches loft all his
friends ; and of this truth, continues Pindar, you,
Thrafybulus, are not ignorant, for you are a wife
man: I Ihall therefore fay no more about it, but
proceed
I S THM 1 AN OD E S. Ode II. 221
proceed to celebrate the viclorles of Xenocrates :
after an enumeration of which, he pafTes on to
the mention of the virtues of Xenocrates, whom he
praifes for his benevolence, his public fpirit, his de-
votion to the gods, and his conftant uninterrupted
courfe of hofpitality in all changes of fortune. Thefe
virtues of his father he encourages Thrafybulus not
to conceal through the fear of exciting the envy of
mankind, and bids Nicafippus (by whom this Ode
was fent to Thrafybulus) to tell him to publilh it;
concluding with obferving, that a Poem is not made
to continue always, like a mute and motionlefs
llatue, in one place.
STROPHE I.
^TP H E y, Thrafybulus, who in ancient days
-■' Triumphant mounted in the Mufes' car.
Tuning their harps to foft and tender lays,
Aim'd their fweet numbers at the young and fair;
Whofe beauties, ripe for love, with rapturous fires
Their wanton hearts in flam 'd, and waken'd ilrong delires,
ANTISTROPHE I.
As yet the Mufe, defpifmg fordid gain.
Strung not for gold her mercenary lyre :
Nor did Terpfichore adorn her ftrain
In gilded courtefy and gay attire.
With fair appearances to move the heart.
And recommend to fale her proftituted art.
EPODE
2.22 W E S T ' S P O E M S.
K P O D E I.
But now (he fulFers all her tuneful train
Far other principles to hold ;
And with the Spartan Sage maintain.
That Man is worthlefs without Gold.
This truth himfelf by fad experience prov'd,
Deferted in his need by thofe he lov'd.
Nor to thy wifdom is this truth unknown.
No longer therefore fhall the Mufe delay
To fmg the rapid fteeds, and Ifthmian crown.
Which the great monarch of the briny flood
On lov'd Xenocrates beftow'd
iiis generous cares with honour to repay.
STROPHE II.
Him too, his Agrigentum's brighteft flar,
Latona*s fon with favourable eyes
At Crifa view'd, and blefs'd his conquering car;;
Nor, when, contending for the noble prize,
Nicomachus, on Athens' craggy plain.
With dextrous art control'd the chariot-fteering rein.
A N T I S T R O P H E II.
Did Phoebus blame the driver's fkilful hand ;
But with Athenian palms his mafter grac'd :
His mafter, greeted in th' Olympick fand ;
And evermore with grateful zeal embrac'd
By the great priefts, whofe herald voice proclaims
Th' Elean fealls of Jove, and Pifa's facrcd games.
EPODE
ISTHMIAN ODES. O d e II. 223
E P O D E II,
Him, on the golden lap of victory
Reclining his illuilrious head.
They hail'd with fv^^eeteil melody ;
And through the land his glory ipread.
Through the fam'd Altis of Oiympick Jove;
Where in the honours of the facred grove
The children of ^nefidamus fhar'd ;
For not unknown to victory and praife
Oft, Thrafybulus, hath thy manfion heard
The pleafmg concerts of the youthful choir,
Attemper'd to the warbling lyre.
And the fweet mixture of triumphal lays.
STROPHE III.
In fmooth and flowery paths th' encomlall: treads.
When to the manfions of the good and great
In pomp the nymphs of Helicon he leads :
Yet thee, Xenocrates, to celebrate.
Thy all-furpafiing gentlenefs to fmg
In equal itrains, requires an all-furpaffing firing*
ANTISTROPHE III.
To all benevolent, revered, belov'd.
In every focial virtue he excell'd ;
And with his conquering fteeds at Corinth prov'dj
How facred the decrees of Greece he held j
With equal zeal th' immortals he ador'd.
And fpread with frequent feafts his confecrated board.
EPODE
224 WEST'S POEMS.
E P O D E III.
Nor did he e'er when rofe a ftormy gale
Relax his hofpitable courfe.
Or gather in his fwelling fail :
But, finding ever fome refource
The fierce extremes of fortune to allay.
Held on with equal pace his conftant way.
Permit not then, through dread of envious tongues.
Thy father's worth to be in filence lolt ;
Nor from the public keep thefe choral fongs.
Not in one corner is the Poet's ftrain
Form'd, like a ftatue, to remain.
This, Nicafippus, tell my honour'd holl»
TRANS-
[ 225 ]
TRANSLATIONS
FROM THE
ARGONAUTICKS
O F
APOLLONIUS RHODIUS.
THE SONG OF ORPHEUS,
AND THE SETTING OUT OF THE ARGO.
'T* H E N too the jarring heroes to compofe
'■' Th' inchanting Bard, Oeagrian Orpheus rofe.
And thus, attuning to the trembling ftrings :
His foothing voice, of harmony he fmgs.
In the beginning how heaven, earth, and fea.
In one tumultuous chaos blended lay ;
Till nature parted the conflidling foes.
And beauteous order from diforder rofe :
How roll'd incelTant o'er th' ethereal plain
Move in eternal dance the ftarry train ;
How the pale orb of night, and golden fun.
Through months and years their radiant journeys run ;
Whence rofe the mountains clad v/ith waving woods.
The rufhing rivers, and refounding floods.
Vol. LVII, CL With
226 W E S T * S P O E M S.
With all their nymphs ; from what celeflial feed
The various tribes of animals proceed.
Next how Ophion held his ancient reign.
With his fam'd confort, daughter of the main:
On high Olympus' fnowy head enthron'd.
The new-created world their empire own'd:
Till force fuperior, and fuccefslefs war,
Divefted of their crowns the regal pair;
On Saturn's head Ophion's honours plac'd.
And with his confort' s glories Rhea grac'd.
Thence to old Ocean's watery kingdoms hurl'd
Thus they refign'd the fceptre of the world:
And Saturn rul'd the blefs'd Titanian gods.
While infant Jove poiTefs'd the dark abodes
Of Dixie's cave; his mind yet uninform'd
V/ith heavenly wifdom, and his hand unarm 'd :
Forg'd by the Cyclops, earth's gigantic race,
Flam'd not as yet the lightning's fcorching blaze.
Nor roar'd the thunder through the realms above.
The ftrength and glory of almighty Jove.
This faid, the tuneful Bard his lyre unftrung.
And ceas'd th' inchanting mufic of his tongue.
But, with the found entranc'd, th' attentive ear
Thought him Hill fmging. Hill ftood fix'd to hear.
In filent rapture every chief remains.
And feels within his heart the thrilling flrains.
Forthwith the bowl they crown with rofy wine.
And pay due honours to the power divine.
The pure libations on the fire they pour.
While rifmg flames the myftick tongues devour.
Now
TRANSLATIONS. 227
Now fable night afcends her ftarry throne.
And Argo's chiefs her drovvfy influence own.
But when the bright-ey'd morning rear'd her head.
And look'd o'er Pelion's fummits ting'd with red;
Light fkimm'd the breezes o'er the watery plain.
And gently fwell'd the ilucluating main.
Then Tiphys rofe, and, fummon'd by his care,
Embark'd the heroes, and their oars prepare.
Portentous now along the winding fhores
' Hoarfe -founding Pagafsan Neptune roars,
i Impatient Argo the glad fignal took,
j While from her vocal keel loud murmurs broke ;
Her keel of facred oak divinely wrought
Itonian Pallas from Didona brought.
On their allotted polls now rang'd along
In feemly order fate the princely throng :
Faft by each chief his glittering armour flames i
The midmoil llation bold Ancseus claims.
With great Alcides, whofe enormous might
Arm'd with a maffy club provokes the fight.
Now plac'd befide him : in the yielding flood
The keel deep-fmking feels the demi-god.
Their haufers now they loofe, and on the brine
To Neptune pour the confecrated wine.
Then from his native fliores fad Jafon turns
His oft-reverted eye, and filent mourns.
As in Ortygia, or the Delphick Fane,
Or where Ifmenus laves Boeotia's plain,
Apollo's Altars round, the youthful choir,
The dance according with the founding lyre,
0^2 TJie
228 WEST'S POEMS.
The hallow'd ground with equal cadence beat.
And move in meafure their harmonious feet :
Together (o ThefTalia's princes fweep
\Mth well-tim'd oars the lilver-curling deep.
While, raifmg high the Thracian harp, prefides
Melodious Orpheus and the movement guides.
On either fide the dalhing furges broke.
And fierce remurmur'd to each mighty ftroke ;
Thick flafh'd the brazen arms with Ilreaming light.
While the fwift bark purfues her rapid flight.
And ever as the Tea- green tide Ihe cleaves.
Foams the long trad behind, and whitens all the
waves :
So fhines the path, acrofs fiDme verdant plain
Trac'd by the footfteps of the village fwain.
Jove on that day from his celeftial throne.
And all th' immortal powers of heaven look'd down.
The godlike chiefs and Argo to furvey
As througli the deep they urg'd their daring way.
Then too on Pelion's cloud-top'd fummit Itood
The nymphs and fauns and filters of the wood.
With wonder viewing the tall pine below.
That Ihaded once the mountain's ihaggy brow.
Now fram'd by Pallas o'er the founding fea
TheflTalia's mighty heroes to convey.
But, lo ! from Pelion's higheft clift defcends.
And downward to the fea his footfteps bends
The Centaur Chiron; on the beach he flood
And dipp'd his fetlocks in the hoary flood.
Then
TRANSLATIONS. 229
Then waving his broad hand, the bark he hales.
And fpeeds with profperous vows the parting fails.
With him advanc'd his confort to the fhore ;
The young Achilles in her arms ilie bore :
Then, raifing high in air the pleafmg load.
To his fond fire the fmiling infant llievv'd.
THE STORY OF FHINEUS.
THE following day Bithynia's coaft they reacti.
And fix their haufers to the Iheltering beach.
There on the margin of the beating flood
The mournful manfions of fad Phineus ilood,
Agenor's fon; whom heaven ordain'd to bear
The grievous burden of unequai'd care.
For taught by wife Apollo to defcry
' Th' unborn events of dark futurity.
Vain of his fcience, the prefumptious feer
Deign'd not Jove's avvfal fecrets to revere;
But v/antonly devulg'd to frail mankind
The facred purpofe of th' omnifcient mind.
Hence Jove indignant gave him length of days.
But quench'd in endlefs fhade his vifual rays.
Nor would the vengeful God permit him tafte
The chearful bleffrngs of the genial feaft ;
Though the large tribute of the nations round
Their prophet's board with wealth and plenty crowri'J.
For, lo ! defcending fudden from the fky.
Round the pil'd banquet ilirieking harpies fly.
23C W E S T ' S P O E M S.
Who with rapacious claws incefiant tear
Forth from his famiih'd lips th' untaft'd fare.
Yet would fome flender pittance oft remain.
What might fuffice to keep up life and pain.
But then fuch odours the foul fcraps exhal'd.
That with the ftench the loathing ftomach fail'd^
Aloof the hungry guefcs and wondering Hood
While their fick hearts abhorr'd the putrid food.
But now the princely crew approaching near.
The welcome found invades the prophet's ear.
Taught by th' infpiring God that now was come
The long- wilh'd period of heaven's vengeful doom;,
That by thefe heroes deftin'd aid reftor'd.
Peace ihould thenceforward blefs his feaftful board.
Then heaves he from the couch his haggard head.
Like fom.e pale, lifelefs, vifionary Ihade,
And leaning on his ftafF with faltering fteps.
Along the walls his way exploring creeps.
Difeas'd, enfeebled, and by age unbrac'd.
Trembled his tottering limbs as forth he pafs'd.
Shrunk was his form, aduft with want and care.
And burfting through his hide the pointed bones appear.
But faint and breathlefs as he reach'd the gate,
Down on the threfhold over-toil 'd he fate.
In dizzy fumes involv'd, his brain runs round.
And fwims beneath his feet the folid ground.
No more their fundions the frail fenfes keep.
And fpeechlefs fmks the feer in death-like fleep.
This faw the chiefs amaz'd, and gather'd round 5
When from his labouring lungs a hollow found.
With
TRANSLATIONS. 231
With breath and utterance fcarce recover'd broke.
And thus th' enlighten'd leer prophetic fpoke :
« Princes of Greece, attend; if ye be they
Whom o'er the mam Theifalia's pines convey.
And Jafon leads to Colchos' magic land.
Such is your cruel tyrant's flern command.
Yes, ye be they ; for yet my mental eye
Undimm'd pail, prefent, future, can defcr}\
Thanks to thy fon, Latona, who beftows
This grace, this only folace of my woes. .
By Jove, to whom the fuppliant's caufe belongs^
Who hates the mercilefs, who avenges wrongs.
By Phoebus, by Satumia wife of Jove,
By all the blefs'd im.mortal powers above.
Who lead you o'er the main with u'atchful care,
O help ! O fave from famine and defpair
A wretch ill-fated, to afHiftion born.
Nor leave me here unpitied and forlorn.
For not thefe orbs alone depriv'd of fight
Vindictive heaven hath veil'd in doleful night ;
But to extreme old age his cruel law
Doom.s me th' unwaiiing thread of life to draw.
Nor end m.y forrows here ; a heavy chain
Of woes fucceeds, and pain ftili link'd to pain.
From fecret haunts aerial, unexplor'd.
Flights of devouring harpies vex my board.
Swift, infiantaneous, fudden they defcend.
And from my mouth the tallefai morfel rend.
Mean while my troubled foul, with v/oes opprefs'J,
No means of aid, no comfort can fuggell.
0^4 For
232 WEST'S POEMS.
For when the feafl I purpofe to prepare.
They fee that purpofe, and prevent my care.
But cloy'd and glutted with the lufcious fpoil
With noifome ordure parting they defile
Whate'er remains, if ought perchance remain.
That none approaching may the ilench fuftain.
Though his ftrong heart were wrapt in plated mail^
The filthy fragments fuch dire fleams exhale :
Yet me fell hunger's all fubduing pain
Compells, reludant, loathing, to remain;
Compells the deadly odours to endure.
And gorge the craving maw with food impure.
From thefe invaders (fo hath fate decreed)
By Boreas' offspring (hall my board be freed.
Nor on a Uranger to your houfe and blood,
O fons of Boreas, is your aid beftow'd.
Phineus behold, Agenor's haplefs fon.
Once for prophetic fkill and riches known ;
Who, while I fway'd the Thracian fceptre, led
Your dower'd filler to my fpoufal bed.'*
Here Phmeus ceas'd, each pitying hero groans.
But chief, O Boreas, thy relenting fbns
Feel kind compafiion fwelling in their fouls.
While down their cheeks the generous torrent rowls.
Then Zetes near approaching, clofely prefs'd
His hand, and thus the laboring feer addrefs'd :
" O moil difaflrous of all human kind.
Whence fprung the evils that o'ervvhclm thy mind ?
Hall thou, intrulled with the book of fate.
By foily merited celeftial hate i
Hence
T R A N S L A T I O xN S.
-33
Hence falls this indignation on thy head ?
Fain would the fons of Boreas grant thee aid ;
Fain would they execute what heaven ordains.
But awful dread their willing hands rellrains.
To frighted mortals well thy fufferings prove.
How fierce the vengeance of the gods above.
Then fwear, or never fhall this righteous fword.
Though drawn for thy deliverance, aid afford;
Swear, that th' afliftance which our arms ihall lend;>
Shall no immortal angry God offend."
He fpoke ; when ftraight tow'rd heaven difclofmg wide
His fightlefs balls, the fenior thus reply 'd :
" My fon, th' injullice of thy tongue reftrain.
Nor let fuch thoughts thy pious foul profane :
By Phoebus, heavenly Augur, who infpires
My confcious bofom with prophetic fires j
By this my wretched lot of woe and care
Thefe eyes involved in darkening clouds, I fwear^
By the fell demons of the realms below.
Whom ever unpropitious may I know.
From their refentments not in death fecure.
If falfely their dread godheads I adjure :
That your affiHing hands Ihall never move
Wrath or difpleafure in the powers above.""
Then acquiefcing in the folemn prayer.
To aid the prophet Boreas' fons prepare.
The ready youth a banquet fpread, the laft
That thofe fell harpies were decreed to tafte r
Nigh (land the brothers, ardent to oppofe
With glittering faulchions their invading foesr
Bat
234 WEST'S POEMS.
But fcarce the firft fweet morfel Phineus took.
When from the clouds with fwift prevention broke>
Swift as the lightning's glance, or ftormy blail
Whofe rapid fury lays the foreft walle.
Shrill clamouring for their prey the birds cbfcene.
The watchful heroes touting rufh'd between ;
But they with fpeedieft rage the cates devourM,
And round intolerable odours pour'd ;
Then o'er th' ^gean far away they flew ;
Upfpringing fwift with threatening blades purfue
The feather'd chiefs. That day Saturnius Ileel'd
Their vigorous nerves with force untaught to yield ;
And did not Jove their wearying llrength fuftain.
Their flitting pinions had they fpread in vain :
For when to Phineus furious they repair.
Or quitting Phineus feek the fields of air.
The light-wing'd monfters, fleeter than the wind^
Leave the impetuous zephyrs far behind.
As when the hound experienc'd in the chace.
Through fome wide foreft o'er the fcented grafs
A bounding hind or homed goat purfues.
And near his panting prey, and nearer views ;
Eager he ftretches the ihort fpace to gain.
And, fnapping, grinds his gnalhing fangs in vain :
So ever-near th' infulting chiefs purfued ;
The harpies fo their catcliing hands elude.
But now far oiF in the Sicilian main.
By the wing'd brothers, fons of Boreas, flain.
The race of harpies (though heaven difallow'd)
Had ftain'd ihe Plotiaii iiles with facred blood ;
Their
TRANSLATIONS. 235
Their fore diflrefs had Iris not furvey'd.
And darting from the fides the heroes ftaid.
O fons of Boreas, the dread laws above
Permit ye not to wound the Dogs of Jove.
And, lo 1 my oath I pledge, that never more
Shall thofe fell Dogs approach Bithynia's fhore.
This faid, adjuring the tremendous floods,
Moll fear'd, moll honour'd by th' immortal gods %
By the flow-dripping urn of Styx Ihe fwore.
The prophet^s peaceful manfions evermore
From thofe rapacious fpoilers ihould be free ;
Such was the fatal filler's hxt decree.
The goddefs fware, the brothers flraight obey.
And back to Argo wing their airy way.
The Strophades from thence derive their nam.Cj,
The Plotian iflands llyl'd by ancient fame.
Then part the harpies and Thaumantian maid,,
In thoufand various mingling dyes array 'd.
Thefe to the grots retir'd and dark retreat
Of Dixie's caverns in Minoian Crete.
While the gay goddefs of the watery bow
Gain'd in a moment high Olympus' brow.
Mean while the princes in the cleanfmg wave
With purifying rites the fenior lave.
Next from the fpoil, which on Bybricia's fhore
From vanquilh'd Amycus flern Pollux tore,
A vi6lim they feleft with pious care ;
And foothe the gods Vv'ith facrifice and prayer.
Then in the palace each heroic gueil
Partakes the pleafures of the fumptuous feall.
With
236 WEST'S POEMS.
With them fate Phineus, and refrefh'd his foul
With favory viands and the chearing bowl.
Unfatiated he feeds, and bathes in ftreams
Of extafy beyond the blifs of dreams.
THE HYMN OF *CLEANTHES,
f^ UNDER various facred names ador'd I
^^^ Divinity fupreme 1 all potent lord !
Author of nature 1 whofe unbounded fway
And legiflative power all things obey !
Majeflic Jove ! all hail ! To thee belong
The fuppliant prayer, and tributary fong :
To thee from all thy mortal offspring due ;
From thee we came, from thee our being drew ;
Whatever lives and moves, great fire ! is thine.
Embodied portions of the foul divine.
Therefore to thee will I attune my firing.
And of thy wondrous power for ever fmg.
The wheeling orbs, the wandering fires above.
That round this earthly fphere incefTant move,
* Cleanthes, the author of this hymn, was a Stoick
philofopher, a dlfciple of Zeno. He wrote many pieces^
none of which are come down to us, but this and a few
fragments, which are printed by H. Stephens, in a collec-
tion of phllofophical poems. This hymn was tranflated at
the requeft of a very learned and ingenious friend of mine,
who was pleafed to find fuch juft fentiments of the Deity in
a Heathen, and fo much poetry in a philofopher.
Through
HYMN OF CLEANTHES.
337
Through all this boundlefs world admit thy fvvay.
And roll fpontaneous where thou point'ft the way.
Such is the awe impreft on nature round
When through the void thy dreadful thunders found,
Thofe flaming agents of thy matchlefs power :
Aftonifh'd worlds hear, tremble, and adore.
Thus paramount to all, by all obey'd.
Ruling that reafon which through all convey'd
Informs this general mafs, thou reign'ft ador'd.
Supreme, unbounded, univerfal lord.
For nor in earth, nor earth-encircling floods.
Nor yon asthereal pole, the feat of gods.
Is aught perform 'd without thy aid divine ;
Strength, wifdom, virtue, mighty Jove, are thine !
Vice is the a6l of man, by paflion toll.
And in the fliorelefs fea of folly lofl:.
But thou, what vice diforders, canfl: compofe ;
And profit by the malice of thy foes ;
So blending good with evil, fair with foul.
As hence to model one harmonious whole :
One univerfal law of truth and right ;
But wretched mortals fliun the heavenly light ;
And, though to blifs directing ftill their choice.
Hear not, or heed not, reafon's facred voice.
That common guide ordain 'd to point the road
That leads obedient man to folid good.
Thence quitting Virtue's lovely paths they rove.
As various objeds various pafllons move.
Some through oppoflng crowds and threatening war
Seek power's bright throne, and fame's triumphal car.
Some;
238 WEST'S POEMS.
Some, bent on wealth, purfue with endlefs pain
Oppreffive, fordid, and difhoneft gain :
While others, to foft indolence refign'd.
Drown in corporeal fweets th' immortal mind.
But, O great father, thunder-ruling god !
Who in thick darknefs mak'ft thy dread abode !
Thou, from whofe bounty all good gifts defcend.
Do thou from ignorance mankind defend !
The clouds of vice and folly, O control ;
And llied the beams of wifdom on the foul !
Thofe radiant beams, by whofe all-piercing flame
Thy jullice rules this univerfal frame.
That, honour'd with a portion of thy light.
We may eflay thy goodnefs to requite
With honorary fongs and grateful lays.
And hymn thy glorious works with ceafelefs praife.
The proper ta(k of man ; and fure to fing
Of nature's laws, and nature's mighty king.
Is blifs fupreme. Let gods with mortals join !
The fubjed may tranfport a breaft divine.
THE
THE
TRIUMPHS
OF 'THE
GOUT.
TRANSLATED FROM THE GREEK OF
L U C I A N.
* ToUere nodofam nefcit medicina podagram." Ovi n.
DRAMATIS PERSONS.
Goddess of the gout. Messenger.
OcYPUs. Mountebanks.
Physician. Chorus.
Nurse. Spirits,
Scene lies in THEBES.
[ ^41 ]
THE
T R I U M P H .S OF THE GOUT.
SCENE, A CHAMBER.
Enter O c y p u s * lame, and leaning on the Nurfe.
Ocxp. TIT' HENCE, without wound, proceeds this
^ horrid pain.
That robs me of the aflillance of my feet ?
While, like a bow-llring by the forceful arm
Of fome bold archer ftrain'd, the cracking fmews
Labour and llretch ; and force me to complain.
That length of time but flrengthens the difeafe.
* Ocypus, the fon of Podalirius and Aftafia, was eminent
for his ftrength and beauty, a great lover of hunting, and
all gymnaftick exerclfes. This young man, having been
accuftomed to infult and deride whomfoever he faw grie-
voufly afflicted with the gout, telling them at the fame time
that their pains were nothing, brought upon himfelf the
indignation of the goddefs who prefides over that diftemper,
and was at laft, by the violence of the difeafe, driven to a
recantation. Lucian had compofed an entire drama upoa
this fubje(5l ; but as only the beginning of this piece remains,
I have tranflated it, and, with very little alteration in cither,
have made it a part of his other drama, whofe fubjed is the
triumph of the gout over phyfic.
Vol. LVII. R Nur,
242 WEST'S POEMS.
Nur. Raife thyfelf up, my fon, nor bear fo hard.
Left, helplefs as thou art, with thee I fall.
Ocjp. Lefs weighty then, to humour thee, I'll lean.
And rell upon my foot, and bear my pain.
For Ihame it is, that youth Ihould afk the aid
Of fuch a prating, old, decrepit wretch,
Kur. Forbear, vain boy, thy fcofing infolence.
Nor vaunt too much thy youth ; for well thou
know'ft.
In licknefs youth is impotent as age.
Be govern'd; for this arm fhould I withdraw.
Thou fall'ft, while my old feet unfhaken ftand.
Ocyp, But if thou fairil, through age thou fall'ft, not
ficknefs :
Old age is weak, though prompt and willing ever—
Nur. Leave arguing ; and tell me by what chance
This pain hath got pofTeiTion of thy toe.
Ocyp, As in the courfe I exercis'd, awry
My ankle turn'd, and thence the pain enfued.
Nur, Why, as the fellow faid, who carelefs fat
Clipping his grifley beard, then run again.
Ocyp. Or wreftling might I not the hurt receive.
When lock'd together were our grappling limbs }
Nur, A trufty champion by my troth thou art.
If all thy fury light upon thyfelf.
But this is a mere circle of evafions.
And I myfelf the like difcourfe have held
In former times, and try'd to varnilh o'er,
Ev*n to my dearell friends, th' unpleafmg truth ;
But
THE TRIUMPHS OF THE GOUT. 2
43
But now when every •fvvelling member fpeaks.
And burning dolours torture thy whole body-
Enter Physician.
Phy^ O ! where is Ocypus, illuftrious youth ?
For lame, I hear, are his vidorious feet.
And therefore to affift hLm am I come.
But fee ! where, carelefs on the couch diifus'd.
Supine he lies! — Heaven grant thee health, my fon.
And to thy feet reftore their wonted llrength.
Declare to me, O Ocypus, the caufe
Of thy complaint : perhaps my powerful art
May for thy anguifh find fome quick relief,
Ocyp. Intolerable pain my foot confumes.
Fhy, Whence came it ? how ? what accident ? explain,
Ocjp, Or in the llraining race, or haply while
My gymnick exercifes I perform'd.
Some hurt from my companions I receiv'd.
Phy, Then where's the fore and angry inflammation ?
And v/hy no fomentation on the part ?
Ocyp. The woollen bandage I abhor.
}^ur, Alas !
How baneful is the pride of handfome looks !
?hy. What therefore muft be done ? (hall I lay open
Thy tumid foot ? But, Ocypus, be fure
If once I feize upon it, I fhall drain.
At many bleeding wounds, thy arteries.
Ocyp. Put all thy new devices now in practice.
So from this horrid pain my foot be freed.
Phy, Then, lo ! my fteely inlbument I draw.
This crooked, fharp, blood-thirlling inllrument.
R 2 Ocyp,
^i,^ WEST'S POEMS.
Ocjp. Hey 1 ho !
Nur, Phyfician, what doll thou intend ?
Would'ft thou with (harp incifions vex him more r
And, without knowing why, his foot endanger ?
He hath abus'd thee with an idle tale.
For neither in the llraining race, nor while
His gymnick exercifes he perform'd.
From his companions did he hurt receive.
Then lillen to my tale. Healthful he came.
And all unwounded home ; and greedily
The evening feaft devour'd, anddrain'd the bowl j
Then falling on the couch fecurely flept.
But at midnight awaking, loud he roar'd.
As fmitten by fome god : fear feiz'd us all.
And, Oh ! he cried, whence came this dire
mifchance ?
Some torturing daemon feizes on my foot.
Thus on his couch up -fitting all night long
His ..foot in fad folemnity he moan'd.
But when the cock's (hrill-founding trump proclaims
The dawning day, lamenting forth he comes.
And on my fhoulder leans his feverifh hand.
While his difabled footileps I upheld.
All that he told thee is a forg'd device
To veil the fecret of his dire difeafe.
Which now in every limb begins to rack him.
Nor yet is able to extort the truth.
Ocyp» Old age is ever arm'd with mighty words ;
Vaunting in fpeech, but impotent in adion.
He, who when fick his nurfm^ friends deceives,
Like
YHE triumphs of the gout. 245
Like the ftarv'd wretch that hungry maftick •
chews.
But cheats himfelf, and fofters his dlfeafe.
Phy, Thou cheatefl: all ; now that, now faying this,
Confeffing pain, but not explaining what.
Ocyp. And how lliall I explain it ? I indeed
Know that I fuffer pain ; and that is all.
Phy, When pain, without apparent caufe, invades
The fwelling foot, a man may pleafe himfelf
In hunting after this and that folution.
But can't miftake the nature of his evil.
And now hear this, howe'er unpleafmg truth.
At length, with vengeance due, 'tis come upon thee.
Qcyp. It } what ? alas ! what terrible difeafe.
That needs fuch preface to its horrid name ?
Nur, The gout, O wretched Ocypus, whofe pangs
And gnawing tortures thou didii once deride.
Ocyp, But what, O fkilful artift, what fay'it thou ?
Phy, Farewell, to ferve thee I negleft myfelf.
Ocyp. What accident or bufmefs calls thee hence .^
Phy. Into a curelefs evil thou art fall'n.
Ocyp. Mufi I then, ever lame, tormented ever.
Drag on a life of everlalHng woe }
* Maftick Is a great ftrengthener of the ftomach, and
confequently promotes appetite ; which to a man dying of
hunger is fo far from being a relief, that it rather insreafes
his complaint : this I take to be the meaning of this pafTage.
R 3 Phy,
246 WEST'S POEMS.
Phy. Fear not : thou fhalt not be for ever lame>
Ocyp. What worfe have I to fear ?
Phy. On either leg
Her galling fetters will the goddefs bind.
Ocvp. Alas ! in t'other fympathizing foot
Methinks I feel a new unafual pain.
Oramlmotionlefs? Or wherefore dread I \^rijjngup.
To place thefe once fo nimble feet on earth ?
Seiz'd like a child with vain and fudden fear :
Now by the gods, th' immortal gods, I beg.
If aught thy art fuggeft of aid or comfort.
Thy friendly help impart, and heal my pain^
Or furely I (hall die : within i feel
The fecret venom, and the thrilling arrow
That pierces through my feet, and tears my fmewb »
Ph)\ Not to amufe thee with unmeaning words,
Like fome of thofe who call themfelves phyficians,.
But of the healing fcience nothing know,
ril briefly Ihew the ftate of thy complaint :
An unfurmountable and ftrong difeafe
Is fali'n upon thee : bonds more hiird and ftubboni
Than thofe fteeRemper'dfhackles, which the hand
Of jullice fixes on the bold offender :
A dreadful, undifcover'd, fecret ill,
Whofe burden human nature fcarce can bear.
Ocyp. Alas I oh ! oh 1 v/hat inward fmart is this.
That penetrates my foot ? oh ! on thy arm
Support me, ere I fall, and lead me on
As the young Satyrs reeling Bacchus lead.
[yW/f ofi the couch.
Phy.
THE TRIUMPHS OF THE GOUT. 247
Pby, There leave him on the couch ; refrefhing fleep
flis much-exhaufted Ipirits will recruit.
\Exeunt Nurfe and Phyftcian.
O C Y P U S fclus,
Ocyp, O horrid name ! detefled by the gods !
Gout, rueful gout ! of fad Cocytus born !
Whom in the mirky caves of Tartarus
The fiend Megaera in her womb conceiv'd.
And nourifn'd at her breaft : Alefto too
With her fell milk the wapvard infant fed.
But oh ! what god brought thy difaftrous power
To taint this light, and harrafs human-kind ?
If punilhrnent condign purfue the dead,
Eor crimes committed in their days of nature.
What need was there in Plato's dreary realms
With ftreams forbidden Tantalus to vex ?
To whirl Ixion on the giddy wheel ?
And weary Sifyphus with fruitlefs toil }
It fure had been fufficient puniihment
Had each offender the fharp pains endur'd.
That tear this meagre miferable carcafe :
While through th' obflrud:ed pores the llruggling
vapour
And bitter diilillation force their way.
Ev'nthrough the bowels runs the fcalding plague.
And wafles the flelh with floods of eddying fire.
So rage the flames in Etna's fulphurous v/omb :
. So 'twixt Charybdis and vex'd Scylla rave
Th' imprifon'd tides, and in wild whirlpools tofs'd
R 4 Dafli'd
248 WEST'S POEMS.
Dafli'd 'gainft the mouldering rocks the foaming
furge.
O evil unexplor'd ! how oft in vain
We fondly try to mitigate thy woes.
And find no comfort, by falfe hopes abus'd. [^Sleeps,
SCENE changes, and difconjers the ChoruSt conjtfiing
of Gouty Men and Women, marching in ProceJJion to
the Temple cf the Gout, <vjith Mujic and Dancing,
CHORUS.
To tender Attis, beardlefs boy.
The howling Phrygian throng
On Cybele's high mountain chant
Th' enthufiaftic fong.
On yellow Tmolus' flowery top
The Lydian youth around
For Comus mix the warbling voice
And flute's melodious found.
With clafliing arms, in frantick mood.
The mad Idaean train
Attemper to the Cretan dance
Their holy ritual ftrain.
To Mars, the furious god of war.
The fwelling trumpets breathe.
Preluding to contentious llrife.
To battle, blood, and death.
But we, O Gout, afflidive power 1
We thy fad votaries.
In fighs and groans to thee perform
Our annual facrifice ;
When
THE TRIUMPHS OF THE GOUT, 249
When ufher'd by the blufhing hours
The genial fpring appears ;
And every flower-embroider'd vale
Its verdant mantle wears :
When zephyr on each pregnant tree
Calls forth the tender leaves ;
And her fad nefl the fwallow builds
Beneath the friendly eaves :
When in the grove, at midnight hour,
Difconfolate, alone.
For Itys loft th' Athenian bird
Renews her plaintive moan.
[^AT/V Chorusa
SCENE, A CHAMBER.
O c y p u s folus,
Ocyp, Come, O my comfort, my fupporter, come.
My ftafF, my third beft leg, O I now uphold
My tottering footfteps, and direct my way.
That lightly on the earth my foot may tread.
Wretch, from thy pallet raife thy heavy limbs.
And quit the covered clofenefs of the room.
Difpel the cloud, that weighs thy eyelids down>
In open day, and in the golden fun
On purer air thy enliven'd fpirit feaft.
For now my willing mind invites me forth ;
But the weak flelh refufes to comply.
Be refolute, my foul j for well thou know^ft.
The
250 WEST'S POEMS.
The gouty wretch, that would but cannot move.
Ought to be number'd with th' inaftive dead.
Come on.
[Exit OCYPUS^
Scene changes.
Enter Ocypus, w^o difco'vers the Chorus before a
Temple offering Sacrifices to the Gout, <with Mifick
and Dancing. Dance.
Ocyp. — But who are they, whofe hands with crutches
fiird,
Whofe toffing heads with eldern garlands bound.
Seem in wild dance fome feall to celebrate ?
Do they to thee, Apollo, Psans fmg ?
Then would the Delphick laurel Ihade their brows.
Or chant they rather Bacchanalian hymns ?
Then would their temples be with ivy wreath'd.
Whence are ye, ftrangers? fpeak : the truth declare.
Declare, O friends, what deity ye woriliip.
Chor. But who art thou, that mak'il us this demand ?
Thou too, as from thy crutch may be inferr'd.
And hobbling pace, thou art a votary
Of the invincible divinity.
Ocyp. I am ; nor am unworthy of the name.
Chorus. When Cyprian Venus, queen of love.
In pearly dews fell from above,
Nereus amafs'd her fcatter'd frame.
And form'd the fair-proportion'd dame.
Fall
THE TRIUMPHS OF THE GOUT. 251
Faft by the fountains of the deep.
Where on their ouze the furges Deep,
On her broad bofom Tethys laid
The partner of Jove's regal bed.
Minerva, virgin bold and wife.
From the great Monarch of the lkies>
Saturnian Jove, her birth receivM>
In his immortal brain conceiv'd.
But old Ophion, hoary god.
Our goddefs firft embrac'd ;
Firil in his fond paternal arms
The mighty infant plac'd.
What time primaeval Chaos ceas'd^r
And Night eternal £ed;
Bright rofe the m-orning, and the fun
His new-born radiance Ihed.
Then from the womb of Fate fprung forth^
The Gout's tremendous power.
Heaven with portentous thunders rung,..
And hail'd her natal hour.
Clotho received and fwath'd the babe^.
Thence at the ftreaming breaft
Of Wealth by foftering Piutus fed.
Her awful force increas'd.
Ocyp, Say by what rites myfterious to her altar
Doth the dread power her votaries admit ?
Cho.
252 W E S T ' S P O E M S.
Cho. Nor * with the biting fteel ourfelves we wound.
Or fprinkle with our blood the hallow'd ground :
Nor are our necks with galling collars worn ;
Or livid backs with founding I'courges torn :
Nor at the altar, when the vidlim dies.
Gorge we the raw and bleeding facrifice :
But when the Spring the rifing fap impells.
And the young elm with genial moifture fwells.
When in the hedges on the budding fpray
The black-bird modulates her various lay :
Then unperceiv'd fhe drives her piercing dart.
And wounds the inmoft fenfe with fecret fmart ;
The hip, the nervous thigh, the ankles fwell.
The bending knee, and firm-fupporting heel r
The itrong-knit fhoulder and the fmewy arm.
And hand mechanick, feel th' inteftine harm.
Through every joint the thrilling anguifh pours.
And gnaws, and burns, and tortures, and devours ;,
Till length of fuffering the dire power appeafe.
And the fierce torments at her bidding ceafe.
Ocyp. Unweeting then her votary am I.
Thou, goddefs, gentle and benign, approach !
And I, with thefe thy votaries, will begin
Thy facred, folemn, cullomary fong.
\^Dance.
• The Chorus here allude to feveral religious ceremonies
performed by feveral Priefts to their Gods. The Scripture
inentlons the Priefts of Baal cutting and flafhing themfelves
with knives, &c.
Chorut»
THE TRIUMPHS OF THE GOUT. 253
Chorus. Thou air, be ftill ; thou fky, ferene ;
Thy groans, thou gouty wretch, forbear:
Propt on her ftalF, behold the Queen
Deigns at our altars to appear !
[The Goddejs of the Gout defcends or enters.
Hail 1 gentleft of the heavenly powers !
Propitious on thy fervants fmile ;
And grant in Spring's fermenting hours
A quick deliverance from our toil.
Godd. Lives there on earth to whom I am unknown.
Unconquerable queen of mighty woes ?
Whom nor the fuming cenfer can appeafe.
Nor vidim's blood on blazing altars pour'd.
Me not Apollo's felf with all his drugs.
High Heaven's divine Phyfician, can fubdue;
Nor his learn'd fon, wife .^culapius.
Yet, ever fmce the race of man begun.
All have effay'd my fury to repel.
Racking th' invention of iHll-baffled phyflck.
Some this receipt 'gainfl me, fome that explore.
Plantane they bruife, the parlley's odorous herb.
The lenient lettuce, and the purflain wild.
Thefe bitter horehound, and the watery plant
That on the verdant banks of rivers grows ;
Thofe nettles cruih, and comfrey's vifcid root.
And pluck the lentils in the Handing pools.
Some parfnips, fome the gloffy leaf apply
That fhades the downy peach, benumming
henbane.
The poppies foothing gum, th' emollient bulb.
Kind of the Punick apple, fleawort hot,
The
254 W E S T ' S P O E M S.
The coilly frankincenfe, and fearching root
Of potent hellebore. Toft fenugreek
Temper'd with rofy wine, coliamphacum.
Nitre and fpavvn of frogs, the Cyprefs-cone,
And meal of bearded barley, and the leaf
Of colworts unprepar'd, and ointments made
Of pickled garus, and (O vain conceit !)
The dung of mountain-goats, and human ordure.
The flower of beans, and hot farcophagus.
The poifonous ruddock * fome, and fhrew-moufe
boil.
The weafel fome, the frog, the lizard green.
The fell hya:na, and the wily fox.
And branching ftone-buck f bearded like a goat.
What kind of metals have ye left untry'd?
What juice ? what weeping tree's medicinal tear ?
What beafts, what animals, have not bellow 'd
Their bones, or nerves, or hides, or blood, or
marrow.
Or milk, or fat, or excrement, or urine ?
The draught of four-ingredients fome compofe.
Some eight, but more from feven expedl relief;
Some from the purging hiera feek their cure.
On myftick verfes vainly fome depend;
The tricking Jew gulls other fools with charms;
While to the cooling fountains others fly.
And in the cryfl:al current feek for health.
* A kind of red land-toad.
t A beaft with fhaggy hair and a beard like a goat, but
otherwife like a ftag.
But
THE TRIUMPHS OF THE GOUT. 255
But to all thefe fell anguiih I denounce.
To all who tempt me ever more levere.
But they who patiently my vilit take.
Nor feek to coinbat me with anodynes.
Still find me gentle and benevolent.
For in my rites whoe'er participates.
His tongue with eloquence I ftrait endow.
And teach him with facetious wit to pleafe,
A merry, gay, jocofe companion boon :
Round whom the noify croud incefTant laugh.
As to the baths the crippled wretch is borne.
For that dire Ate, of whom Homer fmgs.
That dreaded powerful deity am I :
Who on the heads of men infulting tread.
And filent, foft, and unobferv'd, approach.
But as from me the acid drop defcends.
The drop of anguiih, I the Gout am call'd.
Now then, my votaries all, my orgies fmg.
And praife with hymns th' unconquerable goddefs.
Chorus. Hear, ftubborn virgin, fierce and flrong.
Impracticable maid !
O lillen to our holy fong !
And grant thy fervants aid !
Thy power, imperious dame, difmays
The Monarch of the Dead,
And ftrikes the Ruler of the feas
And thundering Jove with dread.
Thee
256 WEST'S POEMS.
Thee foft repofing beds delight
And flannels warm embrace.
And bandag'd legs nor fwift in flight,
Nor vidors in the race.
Thy flames the tumid ankles feel.
The linger maim'd, the burning heel.
And toe that dreads the ground.
Thy pains unclos'd our eye-lids keep.
Or grant at beft tumultuous fleep
And flumbers never found.
Thy cramps our limbs diftort.
Thy knots our joints invade:
Such is thy cruel fport I
Inexorable maid !
Enter Meffengery 'vjith tixio Mountebanks bound.
Me/. O ! Mifl-refs, opportunely art thou met.
Attend ; no vain or idle tale I bring.
But well fupported by authentick fads.
As through the town (for fo thou didfl enjoin)
With flow and gentle pace I lately ranged.
Searching if haply I might chance to find
A mortal bold enough to brave thy power ;
There quiet all, and patient, I beheld.
Subdued, O goddefs, by thy mighty arm.
All but thefe two prefumptuous daring wretches.
Who to the gaping crowd with oaths deny'd
To pay due reverence to thy deity,
Boalling that they would banifli thee from earth :
Where-
THE TRIUMPHS OF THE GOUT, 257
Wherefore with fetters ftrong their legs I bound.
And after five days march have brought them
hither,
A weary march of twice five hundred feet.
Godd. Swift haft thou come, my winged mefienger.
Say, from what regions, through what rugged paths
Hall thou thy tedious longfome way purfued ?
Explain, that I m.ay comprehend thy fpeed ?
il^< Five flairs, whofe weak and dillocated frame
Trembled beneath my tread, defcending down,
Firll to the levsl pavement I arriv'd.
That 'gainll my feet its jarring furface turn'd ;
Which having with uneafy footfleps crofs'd,
I enter'd next the rough and flinty llreet,
Whofe pointed ilones the gouty foot abhors :
Here meeting with a fmooth, though flippery path,
I hurried on, but with back-fliding hade,
The trodden flime my tottering ankle turn'd.
Thus as 1 journey'd, dovrn on every fide
The flreaming fweat defcended, and my legs
Faint and relax'd no longer firmly trod.
Thence laboring in each limb, and overtoil'd,
A bread, but dangerous way receiv'd me next :
For on each hand the whirling chariots flcv.'.
And urg'd, and prefs'd, and drove me failer on ;
But I with riimble adion ply'd my feet.
And quick into an alley llept afide,
Till every rattling hafly wheel was pafs'd.
For, as to thee, O goddefs, I belong'd.
Thy votary, I ought not, could not run.
r VoT. LVn. " S~ CroU,
258 WEST'S POEMS.
Godd. Servant, thou hall not well perform'd in vain.
Nor lliall thy prompt obedience want reward.
In recompence this pleafmg boon receive.
Three years of light and gentler pains to bear.
But ye, moft impious heaven-abandon'd villains.
What and whence are ye, that fo proudly dare
The lills to enter with the mighty Gout,
Whofe pov/er not Jove himfelf can overcome I
Speak, wretches — many a hero have I tam'd.
As all the wife and learn 'd can teftify.
Priam * was gouty, as old Poets fmg.
And by the Gout the fwift Achilles fell.
Bellerophon, and Thebes' unhappy Lord,
The mighty Oedipus, m.y prov/efs own'd.
And, of maim'd Pelops' race, young Plifthenes.
He too, who led to Troy his warrior bands.
The halting fon of Pieas, felt my dart.
And by my dart the f Lord of Ithaca,
* Priam avas gouty, &c.] Lucian had this circumftance
from fome fecret hiftories that are not come down to us ;
or poflibly there may be fome conceit which we do not
underftand, fince one cannot help thinking that he alludes
to the lamenefs of Phlioti^etes, which he got by the fall of
one of Hercules's arrows on his foot ; and to the wound
which Achilles received in his heel from Paris, which wound
was the occafion of his death.
-|- Telegonus, the fon of UlyfTes by Circe, coming to
Ithaca to fee his father, was denied entrance by the fervants;
upon which a quarrel enfued, in which he unfortunately flew
his father UlyfTes with a fpear or arrow, pointed with the
bone of a trygon, a poifonous filh.
Not
THE TRIUMPHS OF THE GOUT. 259
Not by the poifonous trygon's bone expirM.
Wherefore, ill-fated wretches, be afTur'd,
Your wicked deeds fhall meet their due reward.
1 Mo. SyriaPxS we are, in fair Damafcus born.
But, urg'd by want and hungry poverty.
O'er earth and fea Ijke vagabonds we roam.
And with this ointment, which our father gave.
We comfort and relieve the fick and lame.
Gciia. What is your ointment, fay, and how prepar'd r
2 AIo. We dare not tell, to fecrecy oblig'd
Both by the folemn oath of our profeffion.
And lall injunctions of a dying father ;
Who charg'd us to conceal the powerful virtue
Of this our medicine, whofe ftrong efficacy,
O Gout, can ev'n thy madding iires allay.
Godd. Ha ! miferable wretches, fay ye fo ?
Is there on earth a medicine, v/hofe effect
My power is not fufficient to control ?
Come on^ upon this iffue let us join.
Let us experience now the prevalence
• Of your ftrong medicine or my raging flame.-.
Hither, tormenting fpirits, Vv'ho prefide
O'er my diilracling forrows, hither come.
Spirits dejcend.
Thou from the tender fole to every toe
Round all the foot the burning anguilh fpread.
Thou in the heel {halt fettle, from, the thigh
Thou on the knee fhalt pour the bitter drop.
And each of you a finger fliall torment,
S 2 $pir.
26o WEST'S POEMS.
Sj)n: Behold, O Queen, thy orders are perform*d.
See ! where the wretches maim'd and roaring lie.
Their limbs dirtorted with our fierce attack.
GoaW. Now, friends, inform us of the truth; declare
If aught your boafted ointment now avail.
For if my forces it indeed fubdue.
Far, to the dark receffes of the earth.
The depths profound of Tartarus, I'll fly.
Henceforth unknown, unhonour'd, and unfeen.
I Mo. Behold the ointment is apply'd ! but, oh 1
The flames relent not. Oh ! I faint, I die 1
A fecret poifon all my leg confumes.
Not fo pernicious is the bolt of Jove :
Nor rages fo the wild tempeftuous fea :
Nor more refiftlefs is the lightning's blaft.
Sure three -mouth'd Cerberus my finews gnaws :
Or on my flefh fome poifonous viper preys ;
Or to my limbs th' envenom'd * mantle clings,
Drench'din the Centaur's black malignant gore !
O Queen, have mercy ! freely we acknowledge
That, nor our ointment, nor aught elfe on earth,
* The mantle of the Centaur NelTus, who having proff*ered
Hercules his fervlce to carry his wife over the river Evenus,
"when he had her on the other fide would have forced her.
Whereupon Hercules (hot him with an arrow. Neflus,
feeing he muft die, in revenge prefents Delanira with his
mantle ftalned with his own blood, telling her it was a
charm for love. She believing this, when Hercules was
facrificing in Mount Oeta, fent him this mantle to put on ;
which he no fooner did, but the poifon worked fo ftrongiy
that he grew mad, and threw himfelf into the fire.
Thy
THE TRIUMPHS OF THE GOUT. 261
Thy unrefifted fury can reflrain,
O mighty conquerefs of human kind !
Ocjp, " I too, O potent goddefs, grace implore.
« Once in the wanton pride of vigorous youth,
" Vain of my beauteous limbs, and adive ftrength,
«' I mock'd thy dolors, and thy power defy'd.
'* But now chaftis'dby thy afHidive arm,
«* And by thy nearer influence fubdued,
" My impious vaunts, O goddefs, I retrad,
" Adore thy might, and deprecate thy wrath."
Godd. Spirits, forbear, and mitigate their woes.
See they repent them of the dire contention.
Now let the world confefs my ftubborn power.
Nor mov'd by pity, nor by drugs fubdued.
\Goddefs a?id Spirits re-afccr.d.
Cho. In vain with mimic flames Salmoneus Itrove
To emulate the bolts of thundering Jove;
To deepeft hell with fcorching lightning driven.
Too late he own'd the flronger power of Heaven.
The fatyr Marfyas blew his boaflful reed.
And, Phoebus, fcrike, he cry'd, thy rival firings.
Stript of his ikin, he mourns the impious deed.
While round the bleeding trophy Pythius fings.
• Robb'd of her children, in eternal woe.
In ftreams eternal while her forrov/s flow,
Sad Niobe laments ths fatal hour.
That urg'd her to provoke Latona's power.
P" S3 Thee,
262 WEST'S POEMS.
Thee, Pallas, Ikill'd in every work divine,
Fooliih Arachne at the loom defy'd;
Inceflant thence ihe draws the filmy twine.
Memorial of her fond prefumptuous pride.
Taught by the vengeance of the gods above,
Latona, Pallas, Pythian Phoebus, Jove,
To mortals be this fage inftruftion given,
** That man, though bold, is not a match for
" Heaven." [Dance,
C/po, O awful Gout, whofe univerfal fvvay
The trembling nations of the earth obey.
Our tormicnts, gracious fovereign, O aiTuage !
Be fhort our pangs, be moderate thy rage !
Many, various, are the woes
That this fcene of life compofe.
Ufe with reconciling balm
Can our throbbing forrows calm;
Can our fliarpeft pains beguile.
And bid gouty wretches fmile.
Hence, companions of my care.
Learn v.dth patient hearts to bear.
To expect with fouls unmov'd
Ills ye have already prov'd.
If feverer woes invade.
Heaven will grant you llrength and aid.
Who, iiiipatient of his pain.
Bites, and gnaws, and fhakes the chain.
Laughter he, and fcorn fhall move.
Such is the decree of Jove.
ON
[ 263 I
O N T H E
ABUSE OF TRAVELLING.
A CANTO,
IN IMITATION OF SPENSER.
THE ARGUMENT.
Archimage tempts the Red-Crofs Kriight
From love of Fairy land.
With ihew of foreign pleafures all.
The which he doth withiland.
I.
\\/ ISE was that Spartan Law-giver of old.
Who rais'd on Virtue's bafe his well-built il:ate.
Exiling from her walls barbaric gold.
With all the mifchiefs that upon it wait.
Corruption, luxury, and envious hate ;
And the diitinclicns proud of rich and poor.
Which among brethren kindle foul debate.
And teach Ambition, that to fame would foar.
To the falfe lure of wealth her Hooping wing to
lower.
IL
Yet would Corruption foon have entrance found.
And all his boailed fchemes eftfoon decay 'd.
Had not he call a powerful circle round.
Which to a dillance the arch felon fray'd
S 4 ' And
264 WEST'S POEMS,
And inefFedual his foul engines made :
This was, to v/eet, that politic command.
Which from vain travel the young Spartan ftay'd,
Ne fufFer'd him forfake his native land.
To learn deceitful arts, and fcience contraband.
III.
Yet had the ancient world her courts and fchools;
Great kings and courtiers civil and refin'd ;
Great rabbins, deeply read in Wifdom's rules.
And all the arts that cultivate the mind,
Embellifh life, and polifti human-kind.
Such, Afia, birth-place of proud monarchy.
Such, elder ^Egypt, in thy kingdoms ihin'd,
Myfterious ^gypt, the rank nurfery
Of fuperftilions fond, and learned vanity.
IV.
But what accompliihments, what arts polite.
Did the young Spartan want, his deeds to grace,
Whofe manly virtues, and heroic fpright,
Check'd by no thought impure, no falfehood bafe^
With natural dignity might well outface
The glare of manners falfe, and mimic pride ?
And wherefore ihould they range from place to placC;^
Who to their country's love fo firm were ty'd.
All homely as fhe was, that for her oft they dy'd ?
V.
And * footh it is (with reverence may ye hear.
And honour due to paffion fo refin'd)
The llrong afFedion which true patriots bear
To their dear country, zealous is and blind,
• Truth.
And
ON THE ABUSE OF TRAVELLING. 265
And fond as is the love of womankind.
So that they may not her defedls efpy,
Ne other * paragone may ever find.
But gazing on her with an awful eye
And fuperllitious zeal, her learn to deify.
VI.
And, like as is the faith unfound, untrue.
Of him who, wandering aye from fair to fair,
Conceiveth from each objed paffion new.
Or from his heart quite drives the troublous care 5
So with the patriot -lover doth it fare.
Who through the world delighting aye to rove.
His country changeth with each change of air.
Or weening the delights of all to prove.
On none, or all alike, bellows his vagrant love
VII.
f AIs doth corruption in a diilant foil.
With double force % alTay the youthful heart,
Expos'd fufpedlefs to the traitor's wile,
Expos'd unwarn'd to Pleafure's poifon'd dart,
Expos'd unprattis'd in the world's wide mart.
Where each one lies, impofes, and betrays.
Without a friend due counfel to impart.
Without a parent's awe to rule his ways>
Without the check of fhame, or fpur of public praife>
• Rival, or one to compare with her.
t Moreover, befides. J Aflault.
VIII. For-
266 W E S T ' S P O E M S.
VIII.
* Forthy, falfe Archimago, traytor vile.
Who burnt 'gainft Fairy-land with ceafelefs ire»
'Gan caft with foreign pleafures to beguile
Her faithful knight, and quench the heavenly fire
That did his virtuous bofom aye infpire
With zeal unfeigned for her fervice true.
And fend him forth in chivalrous attire,
Arm'd at all points adventures to purfue.
And wreak upon her foes his vowed vengeance due*
IX.
So as he journeyed upon the way.
Him foon the fly enchaunter f over-hent.
Clad like a fairy knight in armour gay.
With painted fliield, and fpear right forward bent.
In knightly X guife and fhew of § hardiment.
That aye prepared was for bloody fight.
Whereat the || Elfin knight with fpeeches gent
Him firft faluted, who, well as he might.
Him fair falutes again, as ** feemeth courteous knight.
X.
Then 'gan he f f purpofe frame of valiant deeds
Atchiev'd by foreign knights of t J prowefs great.
And mighty fame, which emulation breeds
In virtuous breafl, and kindleth martial heat ;
* Therefore, f Overtook. :J: Fafhion. § Courage.
II Fairy. ** Befeemeth. ft Difcourfe, or argument.
Xt Might, valour.
Of
ON THE ABUSE OF TRAVELLING. 267
Of arts and fciences for warriour * meet.
And knight that would in feats of arms excel.
Or him, who f liefer choofmg calm retreat.
With Peace and gentle Virtue aye would dwell.
Who have their triumphs, like as hath Bellona fell.
XI.
Thefe, as he faid, befeemed knight to know.
And all be they in Fairy-lond y-taught.
Where every art and all fair virtues grow ;
Yet various climes with various fruits are fraught.
And fuch in one hath full perfection I raught
The which no ikill may in another rear.
So gloz'd th' enchaunter till he hath him brought
To a huge rock, that clomb fo high in air.
That from it he § uneath the murmuring furge mote hear,
XII.
Thence the fait wave beyond in profpeft wide
A fpacious plain the falfe enchaunter fhow'd.
With goodly caflles deck'd on every fide.
And filver dreams, that down the champain flow'd.
And wafn'd the vineyards that befide them flood.
And groves of myrtle; als the lamp of day
His orient beams difplay'd Vv^ithouten cloud.
Which lightly on the gliilening waters play.
And tinge the caflles, woods, and hills, with purple ray,
* Proper, fit. f Rather. J Reach'd. § Hardly.
XIII. So
46S W E S T ' S P O E M S.
XIII.
So fair a landfcape charm'd the wondering knight;
And eke the breath of morning frefii and fweet
Infpir'd his jocund fpirit with delight.
And eafe of heart for foft perfuafion meet.
Then him the traytor bafe 'gan fair entreat.
And from the rock as downward they defcend.
Of that bleft lond his praifes 'gan to repeat.
Till he him moved hath with him to * wend ;
So to the billowy Ihore their hafty march they bend.
XIV.
There in a painted bark all trim and gay,
Whofe fails full glad embrac'd the wanton wind.
There fat a ftranger f wight in quaint array.
That feem'd of various garbs J attone combin'd.
Of Europe, Afric, eaft and weftern Inde.
Als round about him many creatures Hood,
Of feveral nations and of divers kind.
Apes, ferpents, birds with human fpeech endovv'd.
And monflers of the land, and wonders of the flood.
XV.
He was to weet a mighty traveller.
Who curioflty thereafter § hight
And well he knew each coaft and harbour fair.
And every nation's latitude and fite,
* To go. t Man or woman. J Together.
§ Was called.
And
ON THE ABUSE OF TRAVELLING. 269
And how to fteer the wandering bark aright.
So to him ftrait the falfe encounter bore.
And with him likewife brought the red-crofs knight:
Then fairly him befought to waft them o'er ;
Swift flew the dauncmg bark, and reach'd the adverfe
ihore.
XVL
There when they landed were, them ran to greet
A bevy bright of damfels gent and gay.
Who with foft fmiles, and falutation fweet.
And courteous violence would force. them Hay,
And reft them in their bower not far away;
Their bower that moft luxurioufly was * dight
V,^ith all the dainties of air, earth, and fea.
All that mote pleafe the taile, and charm the fight.
The pleafure of the board, and charm of beauty bright.
XVIL
AIs might he therein hear a mingled found
Of feall and fong and laughing jollity.
That in the noife was all diflindion drown'd
Of graver fenfe, or mufic's harmony.
Yet were there fon:e in that blithe company
That aptly could difcourfe of virtuous lore^
Of manners, wifdom, and found policy ;
Yet f nould they often ope their facred Here,
Ne might their voice be heard mid riot and uproar,
* Adorned, fet forth, t Would not.
XVIIL Thereto
2/0 WEST'S POEMS.
Thereto the joys of idlenefs and love.
And luxury, that befots the nobleft mmd.
And cuilom prevalent at diftance drove
All fenfe and relifh of a higher kind.
Whereby the foul to virtue is refin'd.
Inftead whereof the arts of llavery
Were taught, of flavery perverfe and blind.
That vainly boafts her native liberty.
Yet wears the chains of pride, of luft, and gluttony.
XIX.
Of which the red-crofs knight right well aware.
Would in no wife agree with them to go.
Albeit with courtly glee their leader fair,
* Hight PolitefTa, him did kindly woo.
But all was falfe pretence, and hollow fhow,
Falfe as the flowers which to their breafts they ty'd.
Or thofe which feemed in their cheeks to glow.
For both were falfe, and not by Nature dy'd,
Falfe rivals of the fpring, and beauty's rofy pride.
XX.
Then from behind them ftraightway 'gan advaunce
An uncouth ftripling quaintly habited.
As for fome revel malk, or antic daunce.
All chequer'd o'er with yellow, blue, and red;
Als in a vizor black he fhrouds his head,
* Called.
The
ON THE ABUSE OF TRAVELLING. 271
The which he toffcd to and fro amain.
And f eft his lathy falchion brandifhed.
As if he meant fierce battle to J darrain.
And like a wanton ape eft ikip'd he on the plain.
XXT.
And eft about him lliip'd a gaudy throng
Of youthful gallants, frolic, trim, and gay.
Chanting in carelefs notes their amorous fong.
Matched with like carelefs guefts, like amorous play.
Als were they gorgeous, drefs'd in rich array.
And well accepted of that female train,
\\'hofe hearts to joy and mirth devoted aye.
Each profter'd love receive without difdain.
And part without regret from each late favour'd fwain«
XXIL
And now they do accord in wanton daunce
To join their hands upon the flowery plain ;
The whiles with amorous leer and eyes afkaunce
Each damfel fires with love her glowing fwain;
Till, all impatient of the tickling pain.
In fudden laughter forth at once they break.
And ending fo their daunce, each tender twain
To (hady bowers forthwith themfelves betake.
Deep hid in myrtle groves, befide a filver lake.
XXIII.
Thereat the red-crofs knight was much enmov'd>
And 'gan his heart with indignation fwell.
To view in forms fo made to be belov'd,
Ne faith, ne truth, ne heavenly virtue dwell;
t Often. X Attempt.
But
272 W E S T * S P O E M S,
But lull inftead, and falfehood, child of hell;
And glutton floth, and love of gay attire :
And footh to fay, them well could parallel
Their luily * paramours in vain defire ;
Well fitted to each dame was every gallant fquire.
XXIV.
Yet when their fovereign calls them forth to arms.
Their fovereign, whofe f behefts they moll revere,
JRight wifely can they menage war's alarms.
And wield with valour great the martial fpear.
So that their name is dreaded far and near.
Oh ! that for liberty they fo did fight !
Then need not fairy-land their prowefs fear,
Ne give in charge to her adventurous knight
Their friendlhip to beware, and fenfe- deluding Height.
XXV.
But not for liberty they wagen war,
But folely to J aggrate their mighty lord.
For whom their dearell blood they || nillen fpare.
When fo him lifteth draw the conquering fword ;
So is that idol vain of them ador'd.
Who ne with might beyond his meanefl thrall
Endued, ne with fuperior wifdom llor'd.
Sees at his feet proflrated millions fall.
And with religious dread obey his princely call.
XXVI.
Thereto fo high and llately was his port.
That all the petty kings him fore envy'd.
And would him imitate in any fort.
With all the mimic pageantry of pride,
• Lovers. f Commnnds. % Pleafe. || Will not.
A;id
ON THE ABUSE OF TRAVELLlNa 275
And vvorfhip'd be like him, and deify *d.
Of courtly fycophants and * caitifs vile.
Who to thofe fervices themfelves apply'd.
And in that fchool of fervitude erewhile
Had learn'd to bow, and grin, and flatter, and beguile.
XXVII.
For to that feminary of fafhions vain
The rich and noble from all parts repair.
Where grown enamour'd of the gaudy train.
And, courteous haviour gent and debonair.
They call to imitate fuch femblaunce fan- ;
And, deeming meanly of their native lond.
Their own rough virtues they difdain to wear.
And back returning dreft by foreign hond,
Ne other matter care, ne other underllond.
XXVIIL
Wherefore th' enchaunter vile, who fore was griev'd
To fee the knight rejed thofe damfels gay.
Wherewith he thought him fure to have deceiv'd.
Was minded to that court him to convey.
And daze his eyen with majefty's bright ray:
So to a Itately caftle he him brought.
Which in the midil of a great garden lay.
And wifely was by cunning craftsmen wrought.
And with all riches deck'd furpalfmg human thought.
XXIX.
There underneath a fumptuous canopy.
That with bright ore and diamonds glitter'd far.
Sate the fwoln form of royal f furquedry.
And deem'd itfelf I allgates fome creature rare,
* Scoundrels, f Pridc^ $ By all means, omnlno.
Vol. LVII. T While
274 W E S T ' S P O E M S.
While its own haughty Hate it mote compare
With the bafe countenance of the vaffal fry.
That feem'd to have nor eye, nor tongue, nor ear;
Ne any fenfe, ne any faculty.
That did not to his throne owe fervile minillry.
XXX.
Yet wift he not that half that homage low
Was at a wizard's ihrine in private pay'd.
The which conduced all that goodly fhow.
And as he lift th' imperial puppet play'd.
By fecret fprings and wheels right wifely made.
That he the fubtle wires mote not * avize.
But deem in footh that all he did or faid.
From his own motion and free grace did rife.
And that he juftly hight immortal, great, and wife.
XXXI.
And eke to each of that fame gilded train.
That meekly round that lordly throne did ftand.
Was by that wizard ty'd a magic chain.
Whereby their aftions all he mote command.
And rule with hidden influence the land.
Yet to his lord he outwardly did bend.
And thofe fame magic chains within his hand
Did feem to place, albeit by the end
He held them faft, that none them from his gripe mote
rend.
* Difcover, perceive.
XXXII. He
ON THE ABUSE OF TRAVELLING. 275
XXXII.
He was to vveet an old and wrinkled mage.
Deep read in all the arts of policy.
And from experience grown fo crafty fage.
That none his fecret counfels mote defcry,
Ne fearch the mines of his deep fabtlety.
Thereto fair peace he lov'd and cheriihed ;
And traffic did promote and indullry,
Whereby the vulgar were in quiet fed.
And the proud lords in eafe and plenty wallowed.
XXXIIl.
Thence all the gorgeous fplendor of the court,
* Sith'the fole bufmefs of the rich and great.
Was to that hope-built temple to refort,
■ And round their earthly god in glory wait.
Who, with their pride to fwell his royal Hate,
Did pour large fums of gold on every one.
Brought him by harpies fell, him to aggrate.
And torn from peafants vile, beneath the throne
Who lay deep funk in earth, and inwardly did groan.
XXXIV.
Behold, fays Archimage, the envy'd height
Of human grandeur to the gods ally'd !
Behold yon fun of power, whofe glorious light,
O'ei- this rejoicing land out-beaming wide.
Calls up thofe princely flowers on every fide ;
Which like the painted daughters of the plain
Ne toil, ne fpin, ne llain their filken pride
With care, or forrow, fith withouten pain.
Them in eternal joy thofe heavenly beams maintain*
* Since.
T 2 XXXV, TherA
276 WE S T ' S POEMS.
XXXV.
Them morn and evening joy eternal greets.
And for them thoufands and ten thoufands * moil.
Gathering from land and ocean honied fweets
For them, who in foft indolence the while
And flumbering peace enjoy the lufcious fpoil ;
And as they view around the careful bees
f Forefpent v»'ith labour and inceflant toil.
With the fweet contraft learn themfelves to pleafe.
And heighten by compare the luxury of eafe.
XXXVI.
Ungenerous man, quoth then the fairy knight.
That can rejoice to fee another's woe !
And thou, unworthy of that glory bright,
Wlierewith the gods have deck'd thy princely brow.
That doth on floth and gluttony bellow
The hard-earn'd fruits of induflry and pain.
And to the dogs the labourer's morfel throw.
Unmindful of the hand that fow'd the grain.
The poor earth-trodden root of all thy greatnefs vain.
XXXVII.
Oh foul abufe of facred majefly.
That boafteth her fair felf from heaven y-fprong !
Where are the marks of thy divinity ?
Truth, mercy, juilice Heady, bold and llrong.
To aid the meek, and curb oppreffive wrong ?
Where is the care and love of public good.
That to the people's father doth belong ?
Where the vice-gerent of that bounteous God,
Who bids difpenfe to all, what he for all bellow'd ?
* Work hard. t Quite fpent.
XXXVIII. Dweim
ON THE ABUSE OF TRAVELLING. 277
XXXVIIL
Dwell'ft thou not rather, like the prince of helU
In Pandemonium full of ugly fiends ?
Diflimulation, difcord, malice fell,
Recklefs ambition, that right onward * wends.
Though his wild march o'erthrow both fame and
friends.
And virtue and his country ; crooked guile.
Obliquely creeping to his treacherous ends.
And flattery, cursM affaffin, who the while
He holds the murderous knife, can fawn, and kifs, and
fmile.
XXXIX.
Then 'gan he flrait unvail the mirrour bright.
The which fair f Una gave him heretofore.
Ere he as yet, with | Paynim foe to fight.
For foreign land had left his native Ihore.
This in his careful breaft he always bore.
And on it oft would call his wary €ye j
For it by magic framed was of yore.
So that no falfhood mote it well abye.
But it was plainly feen, or fearfully did fly.
XL.
This on that gay affembly did he turn.
And faw confounded quite the gaudy fcene ;
Saw the clofe fire that inwardly did burn.
And walle the throbbing heart with fecret {[ teenj
• Goes.
•f" Una in Spcnfer reprefents Truth, fee B. i . Fairy Queen.
X Heathen, the ufual enemy of Knight-errantainSpenfefc
I) Pain, anguifh.
T 3 Siw
278 WEST'S P O E M S,
Saw bafe dependence in the haughty mien
Of lords and princes ; faw the magic chain
That each did wear, but deem'd he wore unfeen.
The whiles with count'naunce glad he hid his pain^
And homage did require from each poor lowly fwain.
XLT.
And though to that old mage they louted dovsn.
Yet did they dearly wilh for his decay :
Als trembled he, and aye upon the throne
Of his great lord his tottering Iteps did ftay.
And oft behind him Ikulk'd for great difmay y
Als (hook the throne, when fo the villain crcvy.
That underneath opprefs'd and groveling lay,
Impatient of the grievous burthen grcW;,
And loudly for redrefs and liberty did fue.
XLII.
There mote he likewife fee a ribbald train
Of dancers, broiderers, flaves of luxury.
Who call o'er all thofe lords and ladies vain
A veil of femblaunce fair, and richeft dye.
That none their inward bafenefs mote defcry.
But nought was hidden from that mirrour bright.
V/hich when falfe Archimago 'gan efpy.
He feared for himfelf, and warn'd the knight
From fo detefted place to m.aken fpeedy flight..
XLIII.
So on he pafied, till he comen hath
To a fmall river, that full flow did glide.
As it uneath mote find its watry path
Fcr ftones and rubbifn, that did choak its tide.
So
ON THE ABUSE OF TRAVELLING. 27^
So lay the mouldering piles on every fide,
Seem'd there a goodly city once had been.
Albeit now fallen were her royal pride.
Yet mote her auncient greatnefs ftill be feen.
Still from' her ruins prov'd the world's imperial queen,
XLIV.
For the rich fpoil of all the continents.
The boaft of art and nature there was brought,
Corinthian brafs, -Egyptian monuments.
With hieroglyphic fculptures all inwrought.
And Parian marbles, by Greek artilts taught
To counterfeit the forms of heroes old.
And fet before the eye of fober thought
Lycurgus, Homer, and Alcides bold.
All thefe and many more that may not here be told.
XLV.
There in the middeft of a ruin'd pile.
That feem'd a theatre of circuit vail,
Where thoufands might be feated, he erewhlle
Difcover'd hath an uncouth trophy plac'd ;
Seem'd a huge heap of Hone tggether cafl
In nice diforder and wild fymmetry.
Urns, broken freezes, ftatues half defac'd.
And pedellals with antique imagery
Embofs'd, and pillars huge of collly porphyry,
XLVL
Aloft on this Hrange bafis was * ypight
With girlonds gay adorn 'd a golden chair.
In which aye fmiling with felf-bred delight.
In cardefs pride reclin'd a lady fair,
* Placed^
T 4 And
28o W E S T ' S P O E M S.
And to foft mufic lent her idle ear ;
The which with pleafure fo did her enthral.
That for aught elfe iht had but little care.
For v/ealth, or fame, or honour feminal.
Or gentle love, fole king of pleafures naturaL
XLVII.
Als by her fide, in richeft robes array'd.
An eunuch fate, of vifage pale and dead,
Unfeemly paramour for royal maid !
Yet him fhe courted oft and honoured.
And oft would by her place in princely * fled.
Though from the dregs of earth he fpringen were^
And oft with regal crowns Ihe deck'd his head.
And oft, to footh her vain and foolilh ear.
She bade him the great names of mighty f Kefars bear.
XLVIII.
Thereto herfelf a pompous title bore.
For Ihe was vain of her great aunceftry.
But vainer fliU of that prodigious llore
Of arts and learning, which Ihe vaunts to lie
In the rich archives of her treafury.
Thefe fhe to flrangers oftentimes would fhcw,.
With grave demean and foknin vanity.
Then proudly claim as to her m^rit due^
The venerable praife and title of Yertu.
XLIX.
Vertu fhe was % yclept, and held her court
With outward fhews of pomp and majefty.
To which nathelefs few others did refort.
But men of bafe and vulgar indurtry.
* Seat or place, t Emperors. :|: Called or named.
Or
ON THE ABUSE OF TRAVELLING. 281
Or fuch perdy as of them cozen'd be.
Mimes, fidlers, pipers, eunuchs fqueaking fine.
Painters and builders, Tons of mafonry.
Who well could meafure with the rule and line.
And aU the orders five right craftily define.
L.
But other Ikill of cunning architedl.
How to contrive the houfe for dwelling befr,
\^'ith felf-fufficient fcorn they wont negled.
As correfponding with their purpofe leall;
'\nd herein be tliey copied of the refl:.
Who aye pretending love of fcience fair.
And generous purpofe to adorn the breafl
With liberal arts, to Vertu's court repair.
Vet nought but tunes and names, and coins away do bear.
LL
For long, to vifit her once-honoured feat
The fludions fons of learning have forbore :
Who whilom thither ran with pilgrim feet
Her venerable reliques to adore
And load their bofom with the facred llore.
Whereof the world large treafure yet enjoys.
But * fithence ihe declin'd from wifdom's lore.
They left her to difplay her pompous toys
I'o virtuofi vain, and wonder-gaping boys.
LIL
Forthy to her a numerous train doth f long
Of ufhers in her court well pradlifed.
Who aye about the monied ftranger throng.
Offering with fhews of courteous % bountihed
* Since, f Belong, t Good-nature or civility.
Him
2Sz WEST'S P O E M ST.
Him through the rich apartments all to lead.
And fhew him all the wonders of her ftate,
Whofe names and price they wifely can * areed.
And tell of coins of old and modern date.
And pidlures falfe and true right well difcriminate.
LIII.
Als are they named after him, whofe tongue
Shook the didator in his curule chair>
And thundering through the Roman fenate, rung;
His bold Philippicks in Antonius' ear;
Which when the Fairy heard, he figh'd full dear.
And, calling round his quick difcerning eye.
At every f deal he dropt a manly tear.
As he the ftately buildings mote defcry.
Baths, theatres, and fanes, in mouldering fragments lie*
LIV.
And, oh ! imperial city ! then he faid.
How art thou tumbled from thine Alpine throne !
Whereon, like Jove on high Olympus' head.
Thou fittedft erft unequal'd and alone.
And madeft through the world thy greatnefs knov.Ti :
While from the weftern ifles, to Indus '^ fhore.
From feven -mouth'd Nilus, to the frozen Don,
Thy dradded bolts the ftrong-pounc'd eagle bore.
And taught the nations round thy fafces to adore.
* Relate or declare. Thefe under fort of antiquaries,
who go about with llrangers to fhew them the anti-
quities, &c . of Rome, are called Ciceroni.
t At every turn, every now and then.
LV. And
ON THE ABUSE OF TRAVELLING. 2S3
LV.
And doth among thy reliques nought remain.
No little portion of that haughty fpright.
Which made thee whilom fcorn foft Pleafure's chain.
And in free Virtue place thy chief delight.
Whereby through ages fhone thy glory bright ?
And is there nought remaining to confound
Thofe who, regardlefs of thy woeful plight.
With idle wonder view thy ruins round.
And without thought furvey thy memorable wound ?
lvl'
Arife, thou genuine Cicero, and declare
That all thefe mighty ruins fcatter'd wide
The iepulchres of Roman virtue were.
And tropliies vaft of luxury and pride,
Thofe fell difeafes whereof Rome erll dy'd.
And do you then with vile mechanic thought
Your courfe, ye fons of Fairy, hither guide.
That ye thofe gay refinements may be taught.
Which liberty's fair lond to Ihame and thi-aldom brought?
LVIL
Let Rome thofe vaffal arts now meanly boaft.
Which to her vanquifli'd thralls fhe erft refign'd;.
Ye who enjoy that freedom flie has loll.
That great prerogative of human-kind,
Clofe to your hearts the precious jewel bind.
And learn the rich poflefTion to maintain.
Learn virtue, juftice, conllancy of mind.
Not to be mov'd by fear or pleafure's train;
Be thefe your arts, ye brave j thefe only are humane*
LVIIL As
284 WEST»S POEMS.
LVIII.
As he thus fpake, th' enchaunter half aiham'd
Will not what fitting anfwer to devife,
AIs was his caitive heart well-nigh inllam'd.
By that fame knight fo virtuous^ brave, and wife;,
That long he doubts him farther to entice.
But he was harden'd and remorfelefs grown.
Through pradlice old of villainy and vice;
So to his former wiles he turns him foon.
As in another place hereafter fhall be lliovyn.
E 2> U C A^
[ 28s ]
EDUCATION.
A POEM:
Written In Imitation of the Style and IVIanner of
SPENSER'S FAIRY QJJ E E N,
INSCRIBED TO LADY LANGHAM,
Widow of Sir John Langham, Baronet.
*' Unum iludium vere liberale eft, quod liberum facit,
" Hoc fapientiai ftudium eft, fublime, forte, mag-
*' nanimum : castera pufilla & puerilia funt. — Plus
" fcire velle quam fit fatis intsmperantis genus eft.
" Quid, quod ifta liberalium artium confeclatio
" moleftos, verbofos, intempeftivos, fibi placentes
" facit, & ideo non dicentes neceffaria, quia fu-
" pervacua didicerunt." Sen. Ep. 88.
/^ GOODLY difclpline ! from heaven y-fprong !
^^^ Parent of Science, queen of Arts refin'd !
To whom the Graces, and the Nine belong :
O ! bid thofe Graces, in fair chorus join'd
With
236 WEST'S POEMS.
With each bright virtue that adorns the mind I
0 bid the Mufes, thine harmonious train.
Who by thy aid erft humaniz'd mankind,
Infpire, dired, and moralize the Itrain,
That doth efiay to teach thy treafures how to gain I
And thou, whofe pious and maternal care.
The fubllitute of heavenly Providence,
With tendered love my orphan life did rear.
And train me up to manly ftrength and fenfe ;
With mildeft awe, and virtuous influence,
Direding my unpradlis'd wayward feet
To the fmooth walks of Truth and Innocence ;
Where Happinefs heart-felt. Contentment fwect,
PKilofophy divine, aye hold their bleft retreat.
Thou, moft belov'd, mod honour'd, moll rever'd !
Accept this verfe, to thy large merit due !
.And blame me not, if, by each tye endear'd.
Of nature, gratitude, and friendfliip true.
The whiles this moral thefis I purfue.
And trace the plan of goodly * Nurture o'er,
1 bring thy modell virtues into view ;
And proudly boaft that from thy precious flore.
Which erfl enrich'd my heart, I drew this facred lore.
And thus, I ween, thus fhall I bell repay
The valued gifts, thy careful love beilow'd ;
If, imitating thee, well as I may,
I labour to difFufe th' important good,
* Nurture, Education.
TiD
EDUCATION. 287
Till this great truth by all be underflood,
<<■ That all the pious duties which we owe,
** Our parents, friends, our country and our God;
** The feeds of every virtue here below,
*' From difcipline alone, and early culture, grow.'*
CANTO I
ARGUMENT.
The Knight, as to * Psdia's houfe
He his young fon conveys.
Is ftaid by Cullom; with him fights.
And his vain pride difdays.
I.
A Gentle Knight there was, vvhofe noble deeds
•^^ O^er Fairy land by Fame were blazon'd round :
For warlike enterprize, and fage f areeds
Among the chief aHke was he renown'd ;
Whence with the marks of highefl honours crowned
By Gloriana, in domellic peace.
That port, to which the wife are ever bound.
He anchor'd was, and chang'd the toffing feas
Of buftling bufy life, for calm fequefter'd eafe.
* Paedia is a Greek word, fignifying education.
t Areeds, counfels.
II. There
s88 WEST'S POEMS,
IT.
There in domeftic virtue rich and great
As erft in public, 'mid his wide domain.
Long in primaeval patriarchal ftate.
The lord, the judge, the father of the plain.
He dwelt ; and with him, in the golden chain
Of wedded faith y-link'd, a matron fage
Aye dwelt ; fweet partner of his joy and pain.
Sweet charmer of his youth, friend of his age,
Skill'd to improve his blifs, his forrows to affuage,
III.
From this fair union, not of fordid gain.
But merit fimilar and mutual love.
True fource of lineal virtue^ fprung a train
Of youths and virgins ; like the beauteous grove.
Which round the temple of Olympick Jove,
Begirt with youthful bloom the * parent tree.
The facrcd olive ; whence old Elis wove
Her verdant crowns of peaceful viflory.
The f guerdons of bold ftrength and fwift adivity,
IV.
So round their noble parents goodly rofe
Thefe generous fcyons : they with watchful care
Still, as the fwelling paffions 'gan difclofe
The buds of future virtues, did prepare
^ Parent trecy ike /acred olive.'] This tree grew m
the Altis, or facred grove of Olympick Jupiter at Olympia,
having, as the Eleans pretended, been originally planted
there by Hercules. It was eileemed facred, and from that
were taken the Olympick crowns,
I Guerdons, rewards.
With
EDUCATION. 289
With prudent culture the young flioots to rear :
And aye in this endearing pious toil
The)' by a * palmer fage inllrucled were.
Who from deep thought and ftudious fearch erewhile
Had learnt to rnend the heart, and till the human foil,
V.
For by celeftial Wifdom whilom led
Through all th' apartments of th' immortal mind.
He view'd the fecret ftores, and mark'd the f lied
To judgment, wit, and memory aifign'd;
And how fenfation and refledtion join'd
To fill with images her darkfome grotte.
Where, varioully disjointed or combin'd.
As reafon, fancy, or opinion wrought.
Their various malks they play'd, and fed her penfive
thought.
VI,
X Alfe through the fields of Science had he flray'd
With eager fearch, and fent his piercing eye
Through each learn'd fchool, each philofophic Ihade^
Where Truth and Virtue erll were deem'd to lie;
If haply the fair vagrants he § mote fpy.
Or hear the mufic of their charming lore :
But all unable there to fatisfy
His curious foul, he turn'd him to explore
The facred writ of Faith ; to learn, believe, adore.
* Palnier, pilgrim. The perfon here fignlfied Is Mr.
* Locke, charadlerlzed by his works.
t Sted, place, ftatlon. % Alfe, alfo, further.
§ Mote, might.
Vol. LVII. U VII. Thence
29^
WEST'S POEMS.
VII.
Thence foe profefs'd of FaKhood and Deceit,
Thofe fly artificers of tyranny,
* Aye holding up before uncertain feet
His faithful light to Knowledge, Liberty,
Mankind he led, to civil policy.
And mild Religion's charitable law ;
That, fram'd by Mercy and Benignity
The perfecuting fword forbids to draw.
And free-created fouls with penal terrours awe.
VIII.
f Ne with the glorious gifts elate and vain
LockM he his wifdom up in churlifh pride ;
But, Hooping from his height, would even deign
The feeble fteps of Infancy to guide.
Eternal glory him therefore betide.
Let every generous youth his praife proclaim;
Who, wandering through the world's rude foreft
wide.
By him hath been y-taught his courfe to frame
To Virtue's fweet abodes, and heaven-afpiring Fame !
IX.
For this the Fairy Knight with anxious thought.
And fond paternal care, his counfel pray'dj
And him of gentleft courtefy befought
His guidance to vouchfafe and friendly aid ;
* Aye, ever. f Ne, nor.
The
EDUCATION. 29!
The while his tender offspring he convey 'd.
Through devious paths to that fecure retreat ;
Where fage Paedia, with each tuneful maid.
On a wide mount had fix'd her rural feat,
'Mid flowery gardens plac'd, untrod by vulgar fect«
X.
And now forth-pacing with his blooming heir.
And that fame virtuous palmer them to guide ;
Arm'd all to point, and on a courfer fair
Y-mounted high, in military pride.
His little train before he flow did ride.
Him eke behind a gentle fquire * enfues.
With his young lord aye marching fide by fide.
His counfellour and guard, in goodly f thews.
Who well had been brought up, and nurs'd by every
Mufe.
XI.
Thus as their pleafing journey they purfuedj,
With chearful argument beguiling pain :
Ere long defcending from an hill they view'd
Beneath their eyes out-ftretch'd a fpacious plain.
That fruitful fhew'd, and apt for every grain.
For paftures, vines, and flowers ; while Nature fair
Sweet-fmiling all around with countenance X fain
Seem'd to demand the tiller's art and care.
Her wildnefs to correal, her lavilh waile repair.
♦ Enfues, follows. f Thews, manners,
t Fain, carneft, eager.
U 2 XIL Right
292 WEST'S POEMS.
XII.
Right good, I ween, and bounteous was the foil.
Aye wont in happy feafon to repay
With tenfold ufury the peafant's toil.
JBut now 'twas ruin all, and wild decay;
Untill'd the garden and the fallow lay.
The fheep ihorne down with barren * brakes o'er-
grown
The whiles the merry peafants fport and play.
All as the public evil were unknown.
Or every public care from every breail was flown.
XIII.
Allonifh'd at a fcene at once fo fair
And fo deform'd ; with wonder and delight
At man's negled, and Nature's bounty rare.
In ftudious thought a while the Fairy Knight
Bent on that goodly I lond his eager fight :
Then forward rufli'd, impatient to defcry
What towns and caftles there-in were f emplght;
For towns him feem'd, and caftles he did fpy.
As to th' horizon round he Itreteh'd his roaming eye.
' XIV.
Nor long way had they travell'd, ere they came
To a wide ftream, that with tumultuous roar
Amongft rude rocks its winding courfe did frame.
Black was the wave and fordid, cover'd o'er
♦ Brakes, briars. J Loud, land.
f Empight, placed.
With
EDUCATION. 293
With angry foam, and ftain'd with infants* gore.
Thereto along th' unlovely margin flood
A birchen grove that, waving from the Ihore,
Aye call upon the tide its falling bud.
And with its bitter juice empoifon'd all the Hood,
XV.
Right in the centre of the vale empight^
Not diitant far a forked mountain rofe ;
In outward form prefenting to the fight
That fam'd Parnaflian hill, on whofe fair brows
The Nine Aonian Sifters wont repofe ;
Liftening to fweet Caftalia's founding ftream.
Which through the plains of Cirrha murmuring flows.
But this to that compar'd mote juftly feem
Ne fitting haunt for gods, ne worthy man's efleem.
XVI.
For this nor founded deep, nor fpredden wide.
Nor high up-rais'd above the level plain.
By toiling art through tedious years applied.
From various parts compil'd with ftudious paiuj,
Was * erft up-thrown;, if fb it mote attain.
Like that poetic mountain, to be f hight
The noble feat of Learning's goodly train.
Thereto, the m.ore to captivate the fight.
It like a garden fair moft curiouily was I dightir
♦ Erft, formerly. t Hlght, called, named.
X Dight, dre^t.
U 3 XVIL III
294 W E S T » S POEMS,
XVII.
In figured plots with leafy walls inclos'd.
By meafure and by rule it was out-lay 'd;
With fymmetry fo regular difpos'd.
That plot to plot IHU anfwer'd, fliade to (hade;
Each correfpondent twain alike arrayed
With like embellifhinents of plants and flowers.
Of Ilatues, vafes, fpouting founts, that play'd
Through fhells of Tritons their afcending fhowers^
And labyrinths involv'd, and trelice-woven bowers.
XVIIL
There likewife mote be feen on every fide
The yew obedient to the planter's will.
And fhapely box of all their branching pride
Ungently fhorne, and with prepofterous fkill
To various beails and birds of fundry quill
Transform'd, and human Ihapes of monflrous fize ;
Huge as that giant-race, who, hill on hill
High -heaping, fought with impious vain * emprlze^
Defpite of thundering Jove, to fcale the lleepy ikies.
XIX. .
Alfe other wonders of the fportive fhears
Fair Nature mif-adorning there were found :
Globes, fpiral columns, pyramids and piers
V/ith fprouting urns and budding flatues crown 'd j
* Emprize, coterprlze, attempt.
And
EDUCATION. 295
Aud horizontal dials on the ground
In living box by cunning ar tills trac'd j
And gallies trim, on no long voyage bound.
But by their roots there ever anchor 'd fail,
♦ All were their bellying fails out-fpread to every blafl.
XX.
O'er all appear'd the mountain's forked brows
With terrafTes on terralles up-thrown;
^ . And all along arrang'd in order'd rows.
And villo's broad, the velvet llopes adown
The ever-verdant trees of Daphne flione.
But, aliens to the clime, and brought of old
From I^atian plains, and Grecian Helicon,
They fhrunk and languifh'd in a foreign mold.
By changeful Summers ftarv'd, and pmch'd by Win .
ter's cold.
XXI.
Amid this verdant grove with folemn /late,.
On golden thrones of antique form reclin'd.
In mimic majefty Nine A^irgins fate.
In features various, as unlike in mind:
Alfe boalled they themfelves of heavenly kind.
And to the fweet Parnaffian Nymphs allied ;
Thence round their brows the Delphic bay they twin'd.
And matching with high names their npifh pride.
O'er every learned fchool aye claim'd they to prefide.
% • All, ufed frequently by the old Englifh Poets for
jilthough,
U 4 XXII. In
296 W E S T ^ S P O E M S.
XXII.
In antique garbs (for modern they difdain'd)
By Greek and Roman artifts * whilom made.
Of various woofs, and variously diftain'd
With tints of every hue, were they array'd ;
And here and there ambitioufly difplay'd
A purple fhred of fome rich robe, prepar'd
Eri by the Mufes or th' Aonian Maid,
To deck great Tullius or the Mantuan Bard ;
Which o'er each motley veil with uncouth fplendor
glar'd.
XXIII.
And well their outward vellure did exprefs
The bent and habit of their inward mind,
Affeding Wifdom's antiquated drefs>
And ufages by time cafl far behind.
Thence, to the charms of younger fcience blind.
The cuftcms, laws, the learning, arts and phrafe
Of their own countries they with fcorn decliu'd ;
Ne facred truth herfelf would they embrace,
"Unwarranted, unknown in their fore-fathers' days.
XXIV.
Thus ever backward caiting their furvey ;
To Rome's old ruins and the groves forlorn
Of elder Athens, which in profpeft lay
btietch'd out beneath the mountain, would they turn
• Whilom, formerly*
Tuerr
EDUCATION. 297
Their bufy fearch, and o'er the rubbiih mourn.
Then, gathering up with fuperflitious care
Each little fcrap, however foul or torn.
In grave harangues they boldy Vv'ould declare^
This Ennius, Varro; This the Stagarite did wear*
XXV.
Yet, under names of venerable found.
While o'er the world they ilretch'd their awful rodj
Through all the provinces of Learning own'd
For teachers of v/hate'er is v/ife and good.
Alfe from each region to their * drad abode
Came youth unnumber'd, crowding all to tafle
The ftreams of Science; which united flowed
Adown the mount, from nine rich fources caft;
And to the vale below in one rude torrent pafs'd.
XXVL
O'er every fource, proteclrefs of the Hream,
One of thofe Virgin Sillers did prefide ;
Who, dignifying with her noble name
Her proper flood, aye pour'd into the tide
The heady vapours of fcholailic pride
Defpotical and abjefl, bold and blind,,
Fierce in debate, and forward to decide ;.
Vain love of praife, with adulation joinM,
And difmgenuous fcorn, and impotence of mind,
* Dxad^ dreadful
XXVIL Ex-
298 WEST»S POEMSe
XXVII.
Extending from the hill on every fide.
In circuit vail a verdant valley fpread;
Acrofs whofe uniform flat bofom glide
Ten thoufand llreams, in winding mazes led.
By various fluices from one common head;
A turbid mafs of waters, vaft, profound,
Hight of Philology the lake ; and fed
. . By that rude torrent, which with roaring found
Came tumbling from the hill, and ilow'd the level
round.
XXVIII.
And every where this fpacious valley o'er.
Fall by each llream was feen a numerous throng
Of beardlefs llriplings. to the birch-crown'd fhore*
By nurfes, guardians, fathers, dragg'd along :
Who, helplefs, meek, and innocent of wrong,
Were torn reluftant from the tender fide
Of their fond mothers, and by * faitours Ilrong,
By power made infolent, and hard by pride.
Were driven with furious rage, and lalh'd into the tide*
XXIX.
On the rude bank with trembling feet they Hood,
And, calling round their oft-reverted eyes.
If haply they mote 'fcape the hated flood,
Fill'd all the plain with lamentable cries ;
* Faitour, doer, from faire, to do, and fait, deed, cora-
munly ufed by Spenfer in a bad fenfe.
But
EDUCATION. 2991
But far away th' unheeding father flies,
Conilrain'd his ftrong compundlions to reprefs ;
While clofe behind, affuming the difguife
Of nurturing care, and fmiling tendernefs.
With fecret fcourges arm'd> thofe griefly faitours prefs,
XXX.
As on the fteepy margin of a brook.
When the young fun with flowery Maia rides :
With innocent difmay a bleating flock
Crowd back, affrighted at the rolling tides :
The Ihepherd-fvvain at firfl exhorting chides
Their * feely fear ; at length impatient grown.
With his rude crook he wounds their tender fides; .
. And, all regardlefs of their piteous moan.
Into the dafhing wave compels them furious down,
XXXL
Thus urg'd by mallering fear and dolorous f teen
Into the current plung'd that infant crowd.
Right piteous was the fpeftacle, I ween.
Of tender ftriplings flain'd with tears and blood.
Perforce confliding with the bitter flood ;
And labouring to attain the difiant ihore.
Where holding forth the gown of manhood flood
- The fyren Liberty, and ever-more
Solicited their hearts with her inchanthig lore.
* 5€cly, fimple. t Teen, pain, grief.
XXXIL Irk-^
3o<y W E S T ^ S P O E M S.
XXXII.
Irkfome and long the pallage was, perplex 'd
With rugged rocks on which the raving tide
By fudden burfts of angry tempefts vex'd
Oft dafh'd the youth, whofe ftrength mote ill abide
With head up-lifted o'er the waves to ride.
Whence many wearied ere they had o'er-paft
The middle flream (for they in vain have tried)
Again return'd * aftounded and aghaft;
Ne one regardful look would ever backward cafl.
XXXIII.
Some, of a rugged, more enduring frame.
Their toilfome courfe with patient pain purfued ;
And, though with many a bruife and f muckel blamej.
Eft hanging on the rocks, and eft embrued
Deep in the muddy flream, with hearts fubdued
And quail'd by labour, gain'd the fhore at laft.
But in life's pradlic % lear unfkilPd and rude.
Forth in that forked hill they filent pac'd;
Where hid in ftudious Ihades their fruitlefs hours they
wafte*
XXXIV.
Others of rich and noble lineage bred.
Though with the crowd to pafs the flood conftrain'd.
Yet o'er the crags with fond indulgence led
By hireling guides and in all depths fuftain'd,
• Aftounded, aftonifh'd. f Muchel, muchi
J Lear, learnings
Skimm\i
EDUCATION. 301
Skimin'd lightly o'er the tide, undipt, unflaln'd,
Sav^e with the fprinkling of the watery fpray.
And aye their proud prerogative maintain'd.
Of ignorance and eafe, and wanton play,
"Soft harbingers of vice, and premature decay.
XXXV.
A few, alas, how few 1 by heaven's high will
With fubtle fpirits endow'd and finews itrong,
* Albe fore f mated by the tempelb ihrill.
That bellow'd fierce and rife the rocks among.
By their own native vigour borne along
Cut brifkly through the waves ; and, forces new
Gathering from toil, and ardor from the throng
Of rival youths, outltript the labouring crew.
And to the true I Parnafle and heaven-throng'd glory
flew.
XXXVI.
Dire was the tumult, and from every fhore
Difc€rdant echoes ftruck the deafen'd ear.
Heart-thrilling cries, with fobs and || fmgults fore
Short-interrupted, ihe imploring tear.
And furious ilripes, and angry threats fevere,
Confus'dly mingled with the jarring found
Of all the various fpeeches that § while-ere
On Shinar's wide-fpread champain did aftound
High Babel's builders vain, and their proud works
confound.
* Albe, although. t Mated, amazed, feared.
% Parnafle, Parnaflus. \\ Singults, fighs;
§ While-ere, formerly.
XXXVII. Much
502 W E S T ' S P O E M S.
XXXVII.
Much was the knight empaffion'd at the fcene.
But more his blooming fon, whofe tender breaft
Empierced deep with fympathizing teen
On his pale cheek the iigns of drad imprefs'd.
And fill'd his eyes with tears, whiah fore dillrefs'd
Up to his fire he rais'd in mourn'' ^'wife;
Who with fweet fmiles paternal foon redrefs'd
His troublous thoughts, and clear'd each fad furmife;
Then turns his ready ileed, and on his journey hies.
XXXVIIL
But far he had not march'd ere he was flay'd
By a rude voice, that like th' united found
Of iliouting myriads, through the valley bray 'd.
And fhook the groves, the floods, and folid ground :
The diftant hills rebellow'd all around.
*' Arrell, Sir Knight, it cried, thy fond career,
«' Nor with prefumptuous difobedience wound
** That aweful majefty which all revere !
** In my commands. Sir Knight, the voice of nations
" hear!"
XXXIX.
Quick turn'd the Knight, and faw upon the plain
Advancing tow'rds him with impetuous gait.
And vifage all inflam'd with fierce difdain,
A monftrous Giant, on whofe brow elate
Shone
EDUCATION. 30J
Shone the bright enfign of imperial flate;
Albeit lawful kingdom he had none ;
But laws and kingdoms wont he oft create.
And oft'times over both erecl his throne,
While fenates, priells and kings his * fovran fceptre
own.
XL.
Cuilom he height ; and aye in every land
Ufurp'd dominion with defpotic fway
O'er all he holds; and to his high command
Conftrains even flubborn Nature to obey ;
Whom difpoflelTing oft, he doth afTay
To govern in her right : and with a pace
So foft and gentle doth he win his way.
That fhe unwares is caught in his embrace.
And though deflower'd and thrall'd nought feels her
foul difgrace.
XLI.
For nurturing, even from their tenderell age.
The docile fons of men withouten pain.
By difciplines and rules to every ftage
Of life accommodate, he doth them train
Infenfibly to wear and hug his chain,
Alfe his behells or gentle or fevere.
Or good or noxious, rational or vain.
He craftily perfuade them to revere.
As inllitutions fage, and venerable lear.
• Sovran, forfovereign,
XLII. Pro*
^04 WEST'S POEMS.
XLII.
Prote6lor therefore of that forked hill.
And mighty patron of thofe Sifters Nine,
Who, there enthron'd, with many a copious rlU
J^'eed the full ftreams, that through the valley fhine.
He deemed was ; and aye with rites divine,
* Like thofe, which Sparta's hardy race of yore
Were wont perform at fell Diana's fhrine.
He doth conftrain his vafTak to adore
Perforce. their facred names, and learn their facred lore.
XLIII.
-And to the fairy Knight now drawing near.
With voice terrific and imperious mien,
(All was he wont lefs dreadful to appear.
When known and pradiis'd then at diftance fe-en)
And kingly ftretching forth his fceptre fheen.
Him he commandeth, upon threaten'd pain
Of his difpleafure high and vengeance keen.
From his rebellious purpofe to refrain.
And all due honours pay to Learning's reverend train,
XLIV.
So faying, and foreftalling all reply.
His peremptory hand without delay.
As one who little car'd to juftify
His princely will, long us'd to boundlefs fway,
* The Lacedemonians, in order to make their children
hardy, and endure pain with conftancy and courage,
were accuftomed to caufe them to be fcourged very feverely.
And I myfelf (fays Plutarch, in his life of Lycurgus) have
feen fevcral of them endure whipping to death, at the foot
of the altar of Diana, furnamcd Orthia.
Upon
EDUCATION. 305
Upon the Fairy Youth with great difmay
In every quaking limb convuls'd, he lay'd :
And proudly fralking o'er the verdant * lay.
Him to thofe fcientinc flreams convey'd.
With many his young compeers therein to be f embay'd.
XLV.
The Knight his tender fon's diibefsful J flour
Perceiving, fwift to his aiTiftance flew :
Ne vainly llay'd to deprecate that power.
Which from fubmiffion aye more haughty grew..
For that proud giant's force he wifely knew.
Not to 'be meanly dreaded, nor defy'd
With rafh prefumption ; and with courage true^
Rather than ftep from Virtue's paths afide.
Oft had he fnigly fcorn'd his all-difmaying pride.
XLVI.
And now, difdaining parle, his courfer hot
He fiercely prick'd, and couch'd his vengeful fpear ;
■ Where-with the giant he fo rudely fmot,
. That him perforce conftrain'd to || wend arrear-
Who, much abafli'd at fuch rebuke fevere.
Yet his accuftom'd pride recovering foon,
Forth-with his maffy fceptre 'gan up-rear;
For other warlike weapon he had none,
Ne other him behov'd to quell his boldeft § fone.
• Lay, mead. f Embay'd, bathed, dipt.
X Stour, trouble, misfortune, &c.
II Wend arrear, move backwards. § Fone, foes.
Vol. LVII. X ' XLV I J, With
3o6 WEST'S POEMS.
XLVIL
With that enormous mace the Fairy Knight
So fore he * bet, that all his armour f bray'd.
To pieces well-nigh riven with the might
Of fo tempefluous ftrokes ; but he was flay'd.
And ever with deliberate valour weigh'd
The fudden changes of the doubtful fray ;•
From cautious prudence oft deriving aid.
When force unequal did him hard aflay :
So lightly from his fteed he leapt upon the lay.
XLVIII.
Then fwiftly drawing forth his X trenchant blade.
High o'er his head he held his fenceful fhield ;
And warily forecafting to evade
The giant's furious arm about him wheel'd.
With reftlefs fleps aye traverfing the field.
And ever as his foe's intemperate pride.
Through rage defencelefs, mote advantage yield.
With his fharp fword fo oft he did him || gride.
That his gold-fandal'dfeet in crimfon floods were dy'd.
XLIX.
His bafer parts he maim'd with many a wound ;
But far above his utmoft reach were § pight
The forts of life : ne never to confound
With utter ruin, and abolifli quite
* Bet, beat. t Bray'd, refounded.
J Trenchant, cutting. || Gride, cut, hack..
§ Pight, placed.'
A power
EDUCATION. 337
A power fb puifTant by his fmgle might
Did he prefume to hope : himfelf alone
From lavvlefs force to free, in bloody fight
He ftood ; content to bow to Cuftom's throne.
So reafon mote not blufh liis fovran rule to own.
So well he warded, and fo fiercely prefs'd
His foe, that weary vex'd he of the fray ;
Yet * nould he algates lower his haughty creft ;
But mafking in contempt his fore difmay,
Difdainfully releas'd the trembling prey.
As one unworthy of his princely care ;
Then proudly calling on the warlike f fay
A fmile of fcorn and pity, through the air
G an blow his fhrilling horn ; the blafl was heard afar.
' LL
Eftfoons ailonifh'd at th* alarming found.
The lignal of diftrefs and hoilile wrong,
Confus'dly trooping from all quarters round
Came pouring o'er the plain a numerous tlirong
Of every fex and order, old and young ;
The vafials of great Cuftom's wide domain.
Who, to his lore inur'd by ufage long.
His every fumm.ons heard with pleafure fain.
And felt his every wound with fympathetic pain.
* Nould he algates, would not by any means,
t Fay, fair)'.
' , ' X z J. II Thev
3o8 WEST'S POEMS.
LII.
They, when their bleeding king they did behold.
And faw an armed Knight him Handing near.
Attended by that Palmer fage and bold ;
Whofe venturous fearch of devious truth while-ere
Spread through the realms of learning horrors drear,
Y-feized were at firll with terrors great ;
And in their boding hearts began to fear,
DifTention factious, controverfial hate.
And innovations ilrange in Cuilom's peaceful Hate.
LIII.
But when they faw the Knight his fauchion fheathe.
And climbing to his iteed march thence away.
With all hoilile train, they 'gan to breathe
With freer fpirit, and with afpedl gay
Soon chac'd the gathering clouds of black affray.
Alfe their great monarch, cheared v/ith the view
Of myriads, who confefs his fovran fway.
His ruffled pride began to plume anew ;
And on his bugle clear a ftrain of triumph blew.
LIV.
There -at the multitude, that flood around.
Sent up at once a univerfal roar
Of boiilerous joy : the fudden-burfting found.
Like the explofion of a warlike ftore
Of nitrous grain, th' affli(5led * welkin tore.
Then turning towards the Knight, with fcoffings lewd.
Heart-piercing infults, and revilings fore.
Loud burfls of laughter vain, and hifles rude.
As through the throng he pafs'd, his parting fleps purfued,
* Welkin, %,
LV. Alfe
EDUCATION. 309
LV.
Alfe from that forked hill the boailed feat
Of ftudious Peace and mild Philofophy,
Indignant murmurs mote be heard to threat,
Muilering their rage ; eke baleful Infamy,
Rouz'd from her den of bafe obfcurity
By thofe fame Maidens Nine, began to found
Her brazen trump of blackening obloquy :
While Satire, with dark clouds encom.paft round.
Sharp, fecret arrows fhot, and aim'd his back to wound, '
LVI.
But the brave Fairy Knight, no whit difmay'd.
Held on his peaceful journey o'er the plain ;
With curious eye obferving, as he ftray'd
Through the wide provinces of Cuftom's reign.
What mote afrelh admoniih him remain
Faft by his virtuous purpofe ; all around
So many objedls mov'd his juft difdain ;
Him feem'd that nothing ferious, nothing found.
In city, village, bower, or caille, mote be found.
LVII.
In village, city, caltle, bower, and hall.
Each fex, each age, each order and degree^
To vice and idle fport abandon'd aD,
Kept one perpetual general jubilee.
Ne fufFer'd ought difturb their merry glee ;
Ne fenfe of private lofs, ne public woes,
Reftraint of law, religion's drad decree,
Intefline defolation, foreign foes.
Nor heaven's tempeiluous threats^ nor earth's convulfive
throes.
X -: U'lII. SiU
3IO W E S T ' S P O E M S>
LVIII.
But chiefly they whom Heaven's difpoUng hand
Had feated high on Fortune's upper ftage ;
And plac'd within their call the facred band
That waits on Nurture and Inftrudion fage.
If happy their wife * hells mote them engage
To climb through knowledge to more noble praife i
And as they mount, enlighten every age
With the bright influence of fair Virtue's rays ;
Which from the awful heights of Grandeur brighter
blaze.
LIX.
They, O perverfe and bafe ingratitude !
Defpiflng the great ends of Providence,
For which above their mates they were endued
With wealth, authority;, and eminence.
To the low fervices of brutal fenfe
Abus'd the m.eans of pleafures more refin'd.
Of knowledge, virtue, and beneficence ;
And, fettering on her throne th' immortal mind,.
The guidance of her realm to paiTions wild relign'd»
LX.
Hence thoughtlefs, fhamelefs, recklefs, fpiritleis>
Nought worthy, of their kind did they eilay ;
But or benumb'd with palfied Idlenefs
In meeriy living loiter'd life av/ay.
* Hefts, behefts, precepts, commands*
Or,
EDUCATION. 311
Or, by falfe tafle of pleafure led aftray,
For-evar wandering in the fenfual bovvers
Of feverilh Debauch, and luftful Play,
Spent on ignoble toils their adlive powers.
And with untimely blalls difeas'd their vernal hours,
LXI.
Ev'n they to whom kind Nature did accord
A frame more delicate, and purer mind.
Though the foul brothel and the wine-rtain*d board
Of beallly Comus loathing they declined.
Yet their foft hearts to idle joys refign'd ;
Like painted infedts, through the fummer-air
With random flight aye ranging unconfin'd ;
And tailing every flower and bloilom fair,
Withouteii any choice, withouten any care.
LXIL
For choice them needed none, who only fought
With vain amufements to beguile the day ;
And wherefore fhould they take or care or thought*
V/hom Nature prompts, and Fortune calls to play f
** Lords of the earth, be happy as ye may 1"
So learn'd, fo taught the leaders of mankind ;
Th' unreafoning vulgar willingly obey.
And, lea\'ing toil and poverty behind.
Ran forth by different ways the blifsful boon to find.,
LXIIL
Nor tedious was the fearch ; for every where.
As nigh great Cuilom's royal tov/ers the Knight
Pafs'd through th' adjoining hamlets, mote he hear
The merry voice of feiUval Delight
X 4 Saluting
312 WEST'S POEMS.
Saluting the return of morning bright
With matin-revels, by the mid-day hours
Scarce ended ; and again with dewy night.
In covered theatres, or leafy bowers.
Offering her evening-vows to Pleafure's joyous powers,
LXIV.
And ever on the way mote he efpy
Men, women, children, a promifcuous throng
Of rich, poor, v/ife and fimple, low and high.
By land, by water, paffing aye along
With mummers, antics, mufic, dance, and fong.
To Pleafure's numerous temples, that befide
The gliftening ftreams, or tufted groves among.
To every idle foot flood open wide.
And every gay defire with various joys fupplied,
LXV.
For there each earth with diverfe charms to move^
The lly inchantrefs fummon'd all her train:
Alluring Venus, queen of vagrant love.
The boon companion Bacchus, loud and vain.
And tricking Hermes, god of fraudful gain.
Who, when blind Fortune throws, direfts the die.
And Phoebus tuning his foft Lydian ftrain
To wanton motions, and the lover's iigh.
And thought-beguiling fhew, and malking revelry.
LXVI.
Unmeet aflbciates thefe for noble youth.
Who to true honour meaneth to afpire ;
And for the works of Virtue, Faith, and Truth,
Would keep his manly faculties entire.
The
EDUCATION. 313
The which avizing well, the cautious fire
From that foft fyren land of Pleafaunce vain.
With timely hafte was minded to retire,
* Or ere the fweet contagion mote attain
His fon's unpractis'd heart, yet free from vicious flain,
LXVII.
So turning from that beaten road afide.
Through many a devious path at length he pac'd.
As that experienc'd Palmer did him guide.
Till to a mountain hoare they came at laft ;
Whofe high-rais'd brows with fylvan honours grac'd,
Majeftically frown'd upon the plain.
And over all an awful horrour caft.
Seem'd as thofe villas gay it did difdain.
Which fpangled all the vale like Flora's painted train,
LXVIII.
The hill afcended ftrait, ere -while they came
To a tali grove, whofe thick-embowering fhade.
Impervious to the fun's meridian flame,
Ev'n at mid-noon a dubious t^vilight made;
Like to that fober light, which, difarry'd
Of all its gorgeous robe, with blunted beams.
Through windows dim with holy ads pourtrayM,
Along fome cloiiter'd abbey faintly gleams,
AbHrading the rapt thought from vain earth-muiing
themes,
* Or ere, before.
LXIX. Be-
314 W E S T 'S P O E M S.
LXIX.
Beneath this high o'er-arching canopy
Of cluftering oaks, a fylvan colonnade.
Aye liftening to the native melody
Of birds fweet-echoing tlirough the lonely fhade.
On to the centre of the grove they flray'd ;
Which, in a fpacious circle opening round.
Within its fheltering arms fecurely laid,
Difclos'd to fudden view a vale profound.
With Nature's artlefs fmiles and tranquil beauties
crown'd.
LXX.
There, on the bafis of an ancient pile,
Whofe crofs-furmounted fpire o'erlookM the vvoodj,
A venerable Matron they ere -while
Difcover'd have, befide a murmuring flood
Reclining in right fad and penfive mood.
Retir'd within her own abftraded breaft.
She feem'd o'er various woes by turns to brood;
The which her changing chear by turns expreft.
Now glowing with difdain, with grief now * over-kefL
LXXI.
Her tlius immers'd in anxious thought profound
When-as the Knight perceiv'd, he nearer drew;
To weet what bitter bale did her aftound.
And whence th' occafion of her anguifh grew.
* Over-keft, for over-caft»
For
EDUCATION. 315
For that right noble Matron well he knew;
And many perils huge, and labours fore.
Had for her fake endur'd ; her vafTal true.
Trained in her love, and praclis'd evermore
Her honour to refpecl, and reverence her lore.
LXXIL
O deareft drad ! he cried, fair ifland queen !
Mother of heroes ! Emprefs of the Main !
What means that Itormy brow of troublous teen ?
* Sith heaven-born Peace, with all her fmiling train
Of fciences and arts, adorns thy reign
With wealth and knowledge, fplendour and renown ?
Each port how throng'd ! how fruitful every plain I
How blithe the country ! and how gay the town I
While Liberty fecures and heightens every boon I
LXXHL
Avv-aken'd from her ti-ance ofpenfive woe
By thefe fair flattering words, fhe rais'd her head^j
And, bending on the Knight her frowning brow,
Mock'il thou my forrows. Fairy Son ? ihe faid»
Or is thy judgment by thy heart mifled
To deem that certain^ which thy hopes fuggeft ?
To deem them full of life and f luftihead,
Whofe cheeks in Hebe's vivid tints are drefty
And v/ith Joy's carelefs mien^ and dimpled fmilea
imprell ?
* Sith, Iince. t Luftihead, ilrong health, vigour;
LXXIV» Thy
3i6 WEST'S POEMS,
LXXIV.
Thy unfufpeding heart how nobly good
I know, how fanguine in thy country's caufe !
And mark'd thy virtue, fmgly how it flood
Th' alTaults of mighty Cuftom, which o'erawes
The faint and timorous mind, and oft withdraws
From Reafon's lore th' ambitious and the vain
By the fweet lure of popular applaufe,
Againft their bitter knowledge, to maintain
The lawlefs throne of Vice, or Folly's childifh reign.
LXXV.
How vaft his influence ! how wide his fway !
Thyfelf ere-while by proof didft underfland :
And faw'll, as through his realms thou took'il: thy way>
How Vice and Folly had o'erfpread the land.
And canft thou then, O Fairy Son, demand
The reafon of my woe ? or hope to eafe
The throbbings of my heart with fpeeches bland.
And words more apt my forrows to increafe.
The once-dear names of Wealth, and Liberty, and Peace ?
LXXVI.
Peace, Wealth, and Liberty, that nobleft boon.
Are bleiTmgs, only to the wife and good.
To weak and vicious minds their worth unknown.
And thence abus'd but ferve to furniih food
For riot and debauch, and fire the blood
With high fpic'd luxury ; whence Strife, Debate,
Ambition, Envy, Fadlion's viperous brood.
Contempt of order, manners profligate
The fymptoms of a foul, difeas'd, and bloated flate.
LXXVIL Ev'n
EDUCATION. 317
LXXVII.
Ev'n Wit and Genius, with their learned train
Of Arts and Mufes, though from Heaven above
Defcended, vv'hen their talents they profane
To varnifh Folly, kindle wanton Love,
And aid excentric fceptic Pride to rove
Beyond celeftial Truth's attradlive fphere.
This moral fyftem's central fun, aye prove
To their fond votaries a curfe fevere.
And only make mankind more obfdnately err,
LXXVIII.
And ftand my fons herein from cenfure clear ?
Have they confider'd well, and underftood.
The ufe and import of thofe blellings dear.
Which the great Lord of Nature hath beftow'd
As well to prove, as to reward the good ?
Whence are thefe torrents then, thefe billowy feas
Of vice, in which, as in his proper flood.
The fell Leviathan licentious plays.
And upon Ihipwreck'd Faith and fmking Virtue preys ?
LXXIX.
To you, ye Noble, Opulent and Great !
With friendly voice I call, and honeH zeal !
Upon your vital influences wait
The health and fickneis of the commonweal ;
The maladies you caufe, yourfelves mufl heal.
In vain to the unthinking harden'd crowd
Will Truth and Reafon make their juft appeal;
In vain will facred Wifdom cry aloud;
And Juftice drench in vain her vengeful fword in blood.
LXXX. With
3i8 W E S T ' S P O E M S,
LXXX.
With you mufl reformation firft take place:
You are the head, the intelledlual mind
Of this vaft body politic ; whofe bafe.
And vulgar limbs, to drudgery confign'd.
All the rich ftores of Science have refign'd
To you, that by the craftfman's various toil.
The fea-worn mariner, and fweating hind.
In peace and affluence maintain'd, the while
You, for yourfelves and them, may drefs the mental foil,
LXXXI.
Bethink you then, my children, of the truil
In you repos'd: ne let your heaven-born mind
Confume in pleafure, or unaflive ruft;
But nobly roufe you to the taflc aflign'd,
The godlike tafk to teach and mend mankind :
Learn, that ye may inftruft : to virtue lead
Yourfelves the way : the herd will crowd behind^
And gather precepts from each worthy deed :
'« Example is a leflbn, that all men can read.'*
LXXXIL
But if (to all or moft I do not fpeak)
In vain and fenfual habits now grown old.
The ftrong Circ^ean charm you cannot break;,
Nor re-alTume at will your native * mould.
Yet envy not the ftate you could not hold ;
And take compaffion on the rifmg age :
In thiem redeem your errours maotfold ;
And, by due difcipline and nurture fage.
In Virtiie's lore betimes- you docile fons engage.
* Mould, fnane, for in-
LXXXIH- Yc'i
EDUCATION. 319
Lxxxrii.
You chiefly, who like me in fecret mourn
The prevalence of Cuftom lewd and vain ;
And you, who, though, by the rude torrent borne
Unwillingly along, you yield with pain
To his behefts, an adt what you difdain.
Yet nourifh in your hearts the generous love
Of piety and truth, no more rellrain
The manly zeal; but all your finews move
The prefent to reclaim, the future race improve !
LXXXIV.
Eftfoons by your joint efforts fhall be quell'd
Yon haughty Giant, who fo proudly fways
A fceptre by repute alone upheld ;
Who where he cannot dictate ftrait obeys.
Accuilom'd to conform his flattering phrafe
To numbers and high-plac'd authority.
Your party he will join, your maxims praife.
And, drawing after all his menial fry.
Soon teach the general voice your ad to ratify,
LXXXV.
Ne for the atchievement of this great emprize
The want of means or counfel may ye dread.
From my Twin-daughters' fruitful wombs fliall rife
A race of letter'd fages, deeply read
In Learning's various writ : by whom y-led
Through each well-cultur'd plot, eachbeauteous grove>
Where antique Wifdom whilom wont to tread.
With mingled glee and profit may ye rove.
And cull each virtuous plant, each tree of knowledge
prove.
LXX>:V:. Ycur-
3^0 W E S T ' S P O E M S.
LXXXVI.
Yourfelves with virtue thus and knowledge fraught
Of what, in ancient days of good or great
Kiftorians, bards, philofophers, have taught;
Join'd with whatever elfe of modern date
Maturer judgment, fearch more accurate,
Difcover'd have of Nature, Man, and God,
May by new laws reform the time-worn ftate
Of cell -bred difcipline, and fmoothe the road
That leads thro* Learning's vale to Wifdom's bright
abode.
LXXXVIL
By you invited to her fecret bowers.
Then fhall Pseida reafcend her throne
With vivid laurels girt and fragrant flowers ;
While from their forked mount defcending down
Yon fupercilious pedant train Ihall own
Her empire paramount, ere-long by her
Y-taught a lefTon in their fchools unknown,
*' To Learning's richeft treafures to prefer
« The knowledge of the world, and man's great bufmefs
" there."
LXXXVIIL
On this prime fcience, as the final end
Of all her difcipline and nurturing care.
Her eye Pa^dia fixing aye fhall bend
Her every thought and effort to prepare
Her tender pupils for the various war.
Which Vice and Folly fhall upon them wage.
As on the perilous march of life they fare
With prudent lore fore-arming every age
'Gainll Pleafure's treacherous joys, and Pain's embattled
ra-re. LXXX.JX. Then
EDUCATION. 321
L XXXIX.
Then lliall my youthful Tons, to Wifdom ledr ^ ^
By fair example and ingenuous praife.
With willing feet the paths of Duty tread;
Through the world's intricate or rugged ways
Conduced by Religion's facred rays;
Whofe foul-invigorating influence
Shall purge their minds from aU impure allays
Of fordid felfifhnefs and brutal fenfe.
And fwell th' ennobled heart with blefs'd benevolence. •
XC.
Then alfo Ihall this emblematic pile.
By magic whilom fram'd to fympathize
With all the fortunes of this changeful iile.
Still, as my fons in fame and virtue rife.
Grow with their growthj and to th' applauding ikies
Its radiant crofs uplift ; the while, to grace
The multiplying niches, freih fupplies
Of worthies ihall fucceed, with equal pace
Aye following their fires in virtue's glorious race.
XCI.
Fir*d with th' idea of her future fame.
She rofe majeftic from her lov/Iy ftead ;
While from her vivid eyes a fparkling flame..
Out-beaming, with, unwonted light o'erfpread
That monumental pile ; and as her head
To every front flie turn'd, difcover'^d round
The venerable forms of heroes dead ;
Who, for their various merit erft rerown'd.
In this bright fane of glorv fhr'nes of honour fou'^ i.
VoT., LVIL ' Y XCrLOr
322
WEST'S POEMS.
XCII.
On thefe that royal dame her ravifhM eyes
Would often feaft; and ever as fhe fpy'd
Forth from the ground the lengthening ftrufture rift
With new-plac*d ftatues deck'd on every iide.
Her parent-breaft would fwell with generous pride
And now with her in that fequefter'd plain.
The Knight awhile conftraining to abide.
She to the Fairy Youth with pleafure fain
Thofe fulptur'd chiefs did Ihew, and their great lives
explain.
FATHER FRANCIS'S PRAYER.
Written in Lord Westmorland's Hermitages
"KJ E gay attire, ne marble-hall,
^ Ne arched roof, ne piftur'd wallj
Ne cook of Fraunce, ne dainty board,
Bellow'd with pyes of perigord ;
Ne power, ne fuch like idle fancies.
Sweet Agnes, grant to Father Francis ;
Let me ne more myfelf deceive ;
Ne more regret the toys I leave ;
The world I quit, the proud, the vain.
Corruption's and Ambition's train ;
But not the good, pcrdie, nor fair,
'Gainft them I make ne vow, ne prayer j
But fuch aye welcome to my cell.
And oft, not always with me dwell ;
Then
FATHER FRANCIS'S PRAYER. 323
Then call, fweet Saint, a circle round.
And blefs from fools this holy ground ;
From all the foes to worth and truth.
From wanton old, and homely youth ;
The gravely dull, and pertly gay.
Oh baniih thefe ; and, by my fay.
Right well I ween that in this age.
Mine houfe ihall prove an hermitage.
AN INSCRIPTION ON THE CELL.
Beneath thefe mofs-grown roots, this ruftlc cell,
Truth, Liberty, Content, fequefter'd dwell ;
Say you, who dare our hermitage difdain,
What drawing-room can boaft fo fair a train ?
AN INSCRIPTION IN THE CELL.
Sweet bird, that fmg'ft on yonder fpray,
Purfue unharm'd thy fylvan lay ;
While I beneath this breezy ihade.
In peace repofe my carelefs head ;
A.nd joining thy enraptur'd fong,
Inftruft the world-enamour'd throng,
That the contended harmlefs breaft
In folitude itfelf is bleft.
IXSCRIP.
324 WES T'S POEMS.
INSCRIPTION on a Summer-house
Belonging to Mr. We ST, at\ViCKHAM,InKENT.
(An Imitation of Ausonius, " Ad Villam,")
'VJ OT wrapt in fmoky London's fulpliurous clouds,
-^ And not far diilant. Hands my rural cot :
Neither obnoxious to intruding crowds.
Nor for the good and friendly too remote.
And when too much repofe brings on the fpleen.
Or the gay city's idle pleafures cloy ;
Swift as my changing wilh, I change the fcene ;
And now the country, now the town enjoy.
CON-
[ 3^5 J
CONTENTS
O F
WEST'S POEM S,
ODES OF PINDAR.
npHE flrft Olympkk Ode, - ^ Page 137
-■' Second, ----- 148
Third, . - - - 159
Fifth, - - - - 165
Seventh, - - - 178
Eleventh, - - - - 183
Twelfth, - ^ - - 186
Fourteenth, - - - - 190
The firft Pythian Ode, - - - 194
The firft Nemean Ode, - - 206
The eleventh Nemean Ode, - - - 213
The fecond Ifthmian Ode, - - - 220
The Song of Orpheus, and the fetting out of the
Argo. Tranflated from the Argonautics of
Apollonius Rhodius, _ _ - 225
The Story of Phineus. From the fame, 229
The Hymn of Cleanthes, - - - 236
The Triumphs of the Gout, - 241
326 CONTENT S.
On the-Abufe of Travelling. A Canto, in
Imitation of Spenfer, - - Page 263
Education. A Poem : written in Imitation of
the Style and Manner of Spenfer's Fairy Queen, 285
Father Francis's Prayer. Written in Lord Weft-
morland's Hermitage, - - - 322
infcription in a Summer-houfe belonging to
Mr. Weft, at Wiokham, in Kent, 324
END OF VOL. FIFTY-SEV£N,
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